


Princess Justice

by Geekgirles



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Akumatized Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Anti Lila, F/M, Lila finally gets what she deserves, Mild Language, Ml season 3 spoilers, Post-Ikari Gozen, Post-Ladybug, Post-Reflekdoll, Season 3 Spoilers, akumanette, lila gets exposed, ml salt, ml spoilers, post-desperada
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2020-10-20 03:56:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 22,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20668910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Geekgirles/pseuds/Geekgirles
Summary: "Princess Justice, I am Hawk Moth. How many times have you suffered by Lila Rossi's lies and deceit? How many times have you wished for the pain of doubt, isolation and injustice to go away, only to receive twice the amount not long after?"Well, I am giving you the power to avenge every single person who's ever been wronged, especially yourself. All I ask in return, Your Highness, is that you bring me Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculouses. Now, do we have a deal?"A sinister smile appeared on the heartbroken girl's face, her tears still falling."May Doomsday begin!"





	1. The Days before the Crime

**Author's Note:**

> Yep, I actually wrote an Akumanette fic based on the post I made on Tumblr after watching "Ladybug". At this point, I 100% believe that Lila won't be exposed until Marinette's actually akumatised, so... Let's speed things up a little bit, shall we?  
By the way, this is going to be my first multichapter ever, and I just started University, meaning I still have to get the hang on things. So I can't make any promises about updates. I hope you can understand. OH, and one last thing; English is not my first language, so sorry for any possible grammar mistakes!  
Hope you guys enjoy this :)

As he gazed down at the bracelet in his hands, he couldn’t help but admire every little detail in it; the carved flower in the largest stone, the colour it had altogether, the ridiculously charming disorder when it came to the different sizes of its pieces… But above all, it radiated care and warmth.

The same way the girl who had given it to him always did.

It was easy to figure out that the little charm had been one of Marinette’s first creations, Adrien mused. But it still displayed the girl’s natural talent and kindness, and that meant the world to the model.

Unfortunately, he could tell his friend’s usual essence, her optimistic attitude that never wavered even in the most dreadful of times, had started to diminish. Although she did her best to remain the same as always, the blond could tell that lately she always kept her guard up, hyper aware of her surroundings. As if the slightest slip up could lead to complete disaster.

And he had the horrible feeling that he knew why.

“What’s got you so pensive, kid?” Plagg asked, breaking the silence that had settled between them for quite some time. “I wish it were related to buying me Camembert and that you’re just thinking about which would be the best choice… But let’s be real, that ain’t happening anytime soon.” He complained as he flew over to his chosen’s face. “So, what’s this all about?”

“I was just thinking about Marinette, Plagg.”

“Oh, you mean the girl who you’ve sworn over and over again that, although you two seem to be awfully close with each other, is not your girlfriend?”

“That’s because she’s not, Plagg. We’re just friends.” The model defended himself. “Besides, I’m worried about her precisely because she’s my friend. Something’s not right about her lately and I think I know what it is.” The feeling in his stomach was intensifying by the minute, and the model could feel how it pulled at his heart strings the more he thought of the possible implications behind it.

“And what do you think is wrong with her?” The little god of destruction had to be as discreet as possible, knowing full well that he just couldn’t reveal that the sweet but clumsy girl whom Adrien had become so fond of was actually the masked superheroine he gushed over on a daily basis.

It would put an end to the boy’s pitiful pining and obliviousness, though.

“Lila.” Adrien answered, making Plagg shiver because of the uncharacteristically cold tone his chosen had used.

Ever since the incident with Volpina and Ladybug, he’d thought she was just another lonely girl such as himself, Kagami or Chloé (not like she’d ever admit it) who had made the wrong choice about her methods on befriending people. Unfortunately, the time her lies got Nathalie and Gorilla in trouble, akumatised Kagami and put his lady in mortal peril opened up his eyes; if Lila had to hurt people to get what she wanted, she would gladly do so without a second thought.

Adrien really wanted to believe that the worst was over, that Lila’s actions couldn’t get any worse than  _ actively jeopardising _ their mission to defeat Oni-chan, especially once he made clear where he was going to draw the line with her. Apparently, just like it seemed to be the case with every assumption he made on the girl, he was wrong.

That wasn’t her worst.  _ At all. _

Barely a month ago, the Italian girl had chosen to ignore his warnings entirely and take her schemes to the next level. He couldn’t even begin to describe how disgusted he was by it. In the timespan of less than two hours, Lila had managed to frame Marinette of cheating in an exam, of pushing her down the stairs like some vengeful psycho, and of stealing her grandmother’s pendant-which looked awfully familiar to the one she had assured him was a miraculous on her first day of school.

And considering the fact that Marinette knew all along about her silver tongue, something the brunette seemed to despise about people; that the noirette was always on edge when she was around and how suspicious it was of the sneaky student to use her lies to pick on his sweet friend in specific; the blond had a very good hunch that it wasn’t the first time Lila lied to harm Marinette.

“Kid, you there?” The cat-like kwami called again. It wasn’t like Adrien to get lost in thought like that, which made it all the more unnerving. At least he could finally stop worrying about the boy’s naivety when it came to that sly fox. 

“I have to hand it to her, choosing the fox miraculous to lie about was a good call, given she’s as cunning as one.” Adrien chuckled a mirthless laugh.

That caught Plagg by surprise, “Erm… You kinda lost me there, Adrien. Who’re you talking about now? Lila, or Marinette?”

“Lila, Plagg. The only person who’s ever gone as far as doing something like that, other than Hawk Moth, is Lila. But she  _ is _ almost as dangerous as him.” The model spun his chair around, getting up from it as he made his way to his window. Stopping right before it, he looked down to the city beneath him. But his eyes and mind were somewhere else, far away from the material world. “I may have managed to make her come up with another lie to prove Marinette was innocent last time, but just by Marinette’s behaviour alone, nowhere near as cheerful as before, I can tell that the crisis is far from over. It’s a miracle she didn’t get akumatised, it would’ve been a greater chaos than the one from Heroes’ Day!”

_ Kid, you got that right _ , the little flying creature thought to himself. It was not the time to stand idly by and do nothing about it, however. Adrien was right, not only was Paris doomed if Marinette were akumatised because there would be no Ladybug, Lila’s stunt had proven that if the baker’s daughter became one of Hawk Moths targets, Hell would break loose.

And they just couldn’t risk that.

“You never told her it was you who blackmailed-erm, I mean- _ convinced _ little Miss Inexplicable-Disease to prove that she was innocent, you know.” The kwami of destruction reminded him as he landed on the boy’s shoulder. He figured he should support the model on the one good call he’d made so far when it came to the manipulative brunette; teaming up with the noirette to prevent the Italian girl from wreaking havoc. “I’ll admit, you got so serious it gave  _ me _ chills!” Plagg laughed, “If I hadn’t known any better, I would’ve thought you were your old man. Gotta say, I’m proud that you’re letting your claws show as Adrien too, not just as Chat Noir.”

“She deserved it,” Adrien began, “she’d ignored what I said completely and crossed the line when she framed Marinette.” He was still facing the window, but his eyes narrowed more and more with every word that came out of his mouth. It was easy to sense the outrage bubbling up inside of him. “And I won’t tell Marinette about it, either.”

“What? Why?!” The black cat kwami exclaimed, dumbfounded.

“Because you know how Marinette is, Plagg. She’ll only worry about me and feel guilty over it, thinking it was her who pushed me into doing something I didn’t have to do, even when it was my choice all along. And...” He didn’t finished the sentence.

“And?” His magical companion urged him.

He could feel the lump in his throat tightening, making it all much more difficult to breath, let alone utter a word. But he had to. For Marinette. “And this is all my fault, anyways.” He confessed, clenching his fists.

“What are you talking about, Adrien? How is any of this your-”

“It is, Plagg.” The green-eyed teen interrupted him. “If I hadn’t told Marinette to let Lila be because her lies weren’t hurting anyone, Lila wouldn’t have been able to turn everyone against her! If I had actually,  _ at least _ , tried to warn the class that Lila is not what she sells, maybe they wouldn’t have been so quick to doubt Marinette! Maybe if-!”

“Okay, okay. I’mma stop you right there.” This time, it was Plagg who cut off his chosen. “Admittedly, it took you long enough to realise that girl is bad news, that’s true. I mean,  _ Ladybug _ tried to warn you, _ I  _ tried to warn you,  _ Marinette _ tried to as well…;” He stopped as soon as he noticed Adrien’s brow furrowing deeper with each word, “ _ but  _ that was a lesson that you had to learn sooner or later; trust is earned, not given. Sure, it’s a pity it took you so many nasty falls, but hey! That’s the only way you humans ever learn! And what matters is that you actually learned from it, Adrien.”

“You think so?” The model asked him, touched by the uncharacteristic wisdom displayed by his usually slacker of a kwami.

“I know so.” Plagg assured him. “But if you still feel like you have to make it up to your girlfriend,” the black kwami drawled, enjoying the uncomfortable stance Adrien had adopted, “I’d suggest you finally take her to that photoshoot you promised her after Troublemaker attacked.”

While trying to ignore the heat on his face resulted from Plagg’s previous comment, the blond model positively perked up at the idea. He had promised Marinette he’d take her with him, and given several of those sessions were beginning to feel like actual Hell ever since his father had scouted Lila, a real friend’s company was more than welcomed.

Smiling softly but confidently, he looked at the lucky charm one more time and brought it close to his heart, the perfect way to repay the noirette’s kindness appearing in his mind. “You know what, Plagg? That’s a great idea.”

* * *

The atmosphere at his father’s study was always stuffy and distressing, stifling even. The room was clearly meant to be more professional than welcoming or homy; despite the numerous pictures of the young model hanging in the walls. It was easy to tell they were just that; work-related photographs taken of a model, instead of the caring, personal family portraits any other parent would have in their office.

Of course, Gabriel Agreste was no ordinary parent.

The fashion guru had his back turned to his son, mulling over his request as Nathalie checked both Agrestes' itineraries and plans for the week, ready to make the proper arrangements if needed.

To say Adrien was worried was an understatement. Years of experience and disappointment had taught him that one had to be  _ extremely _ lucky or persuasive to convince Gabriel of something. Especially if it included letting people into his business. 

Which Adrien had just done by asking him if he could invite Marinette over to his next photoshoot.

“Please, Father,” Adrien pleaded, “I know this is kind of rushed, but Marinette’s been having a bit of a rough time lately and, since she loves fashion and your work specifically so much, I thought I could just invite her to, you know, cheer her up. And I promise-.”

“I assume you understand how risky this… favour of yours is, Adrien.” His father spoke up. “Letting people in is especially dangerous when you’re in contact with fame and fortune, son. What makes you believe Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng isn’t trying to take advantage of your position?”

The green-eyed boy was definitely taken aback by his father’s serious accusations, but he knew that if anyone was to be trusted, that was Marinette. Without an ounce of a doubt. So he tried to recover from his shock and straightened up.

“Father, I understand where you’re coming from. But I assure you, Marinette is the most trustworthy person I know!” He would go down defending his friend if he had to. “I already told you when I asked for your opinion about the bracelet I made for her birthday; she’s one of the class’ most appreciated and helpful students. 

“If she has to go out of her way to help someone out, she does it without hesitation. And she never asks for anything in return. That’s why I know she would never use me to get close to the fashion industry.” The admiration in the boy’s voice was so apparent that the stoic fashion designer was beginning to wonder if his son harbored romantic feelings for the girl. Ignoring his father’s train of thought, however, the teen continued, “Moreover, you have seen her designs yourself Father, designs even  _ Audrey Bourgeois _ , harshest fashion critic in the world, was impressed with! With her talent she doesn’t need to use people to climb up the social ladder.”

He would’ve continued hadn’t been for the fact that the reclusive genius was now facing him, his expression stoic as ever. Not giving away even an ounce of emotion. 

Gabriel’s unreadable expression only made the blond’s worries multiply. What if he found his defense of Marinette as mere rumbling? What if he thought she’d succeeded in wrapping his only son around her little finger? What if his father considered that he was actually acting out and forbade him from talking to the aspiring designer ever again?!  _ What if he’d unintentionally ruin his friend’s chances of becoming a fashion designer altogether?! What if-?! _

“Very well.”

“Huh?” Adrien had to do a double take on his father. Had he heard him right? 

“I said, ‘very well’, Adrien.” The man repeated, “You are right; Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng is a talented artist and a good influence -from what I’ve gathered- that seems to be rubbing off on you. Given your insistence of doing something good for her to cheer her up.” He sat down in front of his desk and began to continue with the work that had been interrupted by Adrien’s sudden visit. “Provided you two behave and you remain focused during the shoot, I don’t see why it would be a problem.” He then turned to his assistant, “Nathalie, please, inform the photographers of Melle Dupain-Cheng’s visit and have anything that might be required to make her feel comfortable prepared.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Is that all?” He asked his now visibly happy son. 

“Yes, Father. Thank you very much!” The blond couldn’t believe it. He had convinced his father of all people to let Marinette be a part of the fashion industry! Oh, he could not wait to tell her of the great news the next day.

Once Gabriel made sure Adrien was out of earshot, he got up from his desk and headed to his wife’s painting. After pressing the right buttons, he made his way to Hawk Moth’s secret lair, Nathalie following close behind him.

When they were in front of the familiar picture window, he ordered her, “Nathalie, please, inform Melle Rossi that we will be in need of her in our next photoshoot.”

“Right away, sir.” The woman with glasses obeyed, knowing full well what her boss was up to. “Must I assume you will use Lila Rossi’s manipulative ways to try and get Marinette akumatised again, sir?”

“Well, of course.” The holder of the butterfly miraculous chuckled, “You felt it just like me, Nathalie. The promise of untamed chaos and impending victory in exchange of rightful vengeance. If only we’d been able to continue with the plan, Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculouses would already be ours!”

“I’m truly sorry about that, sir.” She said, feeling guilty over letting her medical condition get in the way of their plans.

“Don’t apologise, Nathalie.” Her boss told her. “None of it was your fault, I should have never let you use the peacock miraculous in the first place. It’s way too dangerous. Moreover, that same taste of victory is exactly what I get whenever I feel that young lady is at the verge of breaking down. 

“Forget Style Queen! Marinette’s my greatest champion, my masterpiece! And all I need to do to have her by my side is to cloud her mind with the bitter taste of injustice. And who better to bring injustice that Melle Rossi?”

After typing a quick message to the deceitful girl in question, the temporary user of the peafowl’s power worried about a possible outcome that might put their entire plan in jeopardy. So she spoke up.

“Sir, with all due respect, aren’t you worried that Lila might find it suspicious that, despite the fact that you’re supposed to believe what  _ she _ says, you’ll allow Marinette to be around Adrien and your brand?”

“Oh, Nathalie.” Gabriel turned to face her, smirking. “What makes Mademoiselle Rossi such a perfect ally, even without powers, is the fact that she’s so narcissistic she can’t even fathom the idea of being used by anyone.

“It’s painfully obvious that she thinks  _ she _ is the one manipulating  _ me  _ into doing what she desires, when it’s actually the other way around. Therefore, she won’t suspect a thing. She’ll merely focus on sabotaging Marinette to get her out of her way. In other words, she’ll, unknowingly but gladly, do the dirty work for us.” He finished, a wicked smile plastered of his face.

The following week, he’d put his greatest plan to date to motion. Soon, Paris and its heroes would tremble before him and the unstoppable force that Marinette Dupain-Cheng would become.

It was just a matter of time.

* * *

Marinette had definitely seen better days. 

Ever since Lila set her up, she’d been questioning a lot of things; were really the people she cared about so dumb as to believe everything that liar said? Was the brunette really that good at lying that she never slipped up? Would she always manage to make Marinette’s life miserable? And worst of all, did she matter so little to her teachers and friends that they were so quick to doubt her?

That last thought always forced the aspiring designer to push them all to the back of her head, knowing of the disastrous consequences that would come if she allowed herself to linger in such negative emotions.

Even so, hard as she tried, she couldn’t help but think about her manipulative rival and her ways, trying to figure her out. 

She had honestly believed that the girl had finally seen the error of her ways when she came up with another lie to prove _ Marinette _ was _ innocent _ . But the Italian teen soon proved that to be just wishful thinking on the noirette’s part.

Marinette didn’t know how Lila had done it, but somehow she’d made her way into Gabriel Agreste’s brand as his model. Somehow, she made her way into getting closer to Adrien. 

The thought alone sent shivers through her body.

She knew from experience that Lila’s attraction to the boy she loved had no effect in making her be more honest, even if just for him. If anything, it seemed to only do the opposite. That liar was willing to go further away with her lies than she did with any other person just woo Adrien. 

Admittedly, it was kind of sad that deceit seemed to be the girl’s only method to get closer to people.

Never mind that, though, the holder of the ladybug earrings thought. Now that Lila had outright sabotaged her and she had a reason to spend more time with Adrien than most people in his life had, the baker’s daughter knew she had to keep an eye out for her next schemes. 

That didn’t stop her from feeling like she was about to faint because of her crush’s invitation, though.

“Marinette, are you okay?” The blond asked her, visibly concerned about her silence and absent minded state. 

“Yeah, yeah! Oc fourse! I-I mean, o-of course!” Darn, she was getting tongue tied already and they hadn’t even been talking for five minutes! Trying to regain her cool, she decided to make sure she had heard him right. “But, what e-exactly d-did you just say, Adrien?”

The boy chuckled, it was so like Marinette to do a double take on things. He guessed his news were too much of a shock indeed, Heck,  _ he still _ couldn’t believe it! “My father has given me permission to invite you to my next photoshoot. You know, to… fulfill the promise I made you after Jagged Stone filmed in your house.” He said as he rubbed his neck with one of his hands.

The blue-eyed girl was ecstatic. She was going to see how that side of the fashion industry worked  _ and  _ spend some time alone with Adrien! She would have to make sure she was ready for the day; she needed to be extra careful around the equipment, because it would take over a million years for her to be able to pay for it if she accidentally broke it; she needed to prepare herself to spend a whole day with Adrien, otherwise she was bound to make a fool of herself in front of him; she had to wash her hair, wear her lucky socks-,

The optimistic teen realised she must’ve spaced out for a while the moment she took notice on the fact that Adrien was calling her name. Alright, mentally preparing herself for spending a whole day with him had just risen up to top priority in her to-do list.

She had yet to answer him, she realised. Jumping slightly, the girl quickly straightened up. “I’d love to go, Adrien. Thank you.” She smiled.

As green and blue met, a soft smile appeared on the boy’s lips as well. “You’re welcome, Marinette.” Then, he proceeded to go to his fencing class. Calling her over his shoulder, he added, “This Saturday at 9AM sharp, Marinette!”

“I’ll be there.” The lovestruck teen sighed. Then she panicked when she remembered she had to hurry up and run some errands he parents had asked her to do once she was done with school. Not to mention, Alya would kill her if she didn’t tell her why Adrien had called her aside once class was over.

However, despite the utter bliss she felt for the great opportunity waiting right ahead of her, she couldn’t help the feeling that something was not right…

* * *

Unbeknownst to both teens, a certain new student, with her back pressed to one of the lockers of the locker room, had eavesdropped on their private conversation. And she was seething.

Lila was nothing if she weren’t someone who knew what others wanted, that was why her lies always got her what  _ she _ wanted. Even so, it frustrated her to no end how, hard as she tried, she could never figure Adrien out.

She had tried taking advantage of his fondness of superheroes, and she _ hated _ to even _ think  _ of how that one had turned out. She then tried using piano to get closer to him, but he had the nerve to lecture her about lying. And the few occasions she had managed to be alone with him? That only got her useless warnings from a not-too-pleased Adrien who turned down her advances.

That was all that damned Ladybug’s fault!

Hadn’t she butted in, Adrien would have already been eating out the palm of Volpina’s hand for months! 

And because, apparently, that wasn’t enough of a pain in the butt, now she had to put up with the fact that Marinette “Pathetic excuse of a threat” Dupain-Cheng seemed to matter a lot more to the model than she could ever hope for. And he didn’t even try to hide it!

That was what frustrated the skilled liar the most. No matter what she did to prove that that distasteful insect and that good for nothing goody two-shoes weren’t worthy of his time, Adrien only grew fonder of them.

It was sickening.

And now she had to endure that nuisance’s presence in the photoshoot, instead of having Adrien all for herself like she’d initially thought when Monsieur Agreste’s assistant had sent her a message, telling her that she was required for that weekend’s session.

The green-eyed girl narrowed her eyes, smirking as a new devious plan came to be. Lila Rossi always took an opportunity when it presented itself to her like that. If it all went well, she could get rid of Marinette Dupain-Cheng once and for all.

She just didn’t know that the girl’s downfall would bring her along with her.


	2. The Crime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's taken me a lot more than I originally intended to update... But here I am!   
This chapter is, technically, depending on my own ability, the frustrating, sad part of the fic. Yeah, guess you guys figured what I mean from the title and this summary alone... Don't worry, next chapter is supposed to make up for it.  
I would recommend giving a listen to "Bad Apple", it describes what Marinette's supposed to be going through splendidly, and, most importantly, is sung by Christina Vee, a.k.a, Marinette's voice actress! Seriously, it's great.  
And, without further ado, the chapter!

That Saturday morning, a pigtailed girl, with dazzling bluebell eyes, was anxiously waiting in front of the Dupain-Cheng boulangerie, rocking herself back and forth on her toes. A dreamy and excited look on her face that reflected her inner feelings. The few sighs that would escape her mouth from time to time a clear symbol of her daydreaming state. At the same time as her nervous fidgeting with a bracelet she wore on her right hand indicated her nervousness.

The day had finally arrived. In just a few minutes the kind, sweet, and gorgeous boy that held her heart would make his appearance , and would accompany her to the most promising day she could’ve ever hoped for. Soon, his glamorous car would park right in front of the bakery, ready to pick her up.

Sure, it was more of a work-related invitation than your average hang out with friends, let alone a date, but she finally had the chance to spend some quality time with the blond whose honest and deep eyes had captured her heart on that fateful stormy afternoon. A pair of eyes with the most breathtaking shade of green she had ever seen. One she could only dream of copying with her own designs and colouring expertise. Those eyes were greener than a Northern forest, deeper than the infinite abyss of space, and brighter than the Sun in all of its splendor.

Those were the eyes of the boy she loved.

Ones she constantly wished to be able to lose herself in.

However, as perfect as the day promised to be, there was a cloud of doubt and distrust darkening the beautiful, sunny day of bliss and warmth that spending time with Adrien was supposed to be. She really had a bad feeling about it, hence, why she kept on playing with the handmade bracelet in her wrist.

“Marinette,” her kwami’s voice called her, bringing her back to reality and giving her a moment to ignore the feeling of drowning in a sea of insecurities, “are you okay?” Tikki asked, poking her tiny head through her chosen’s signature bag. “You’ve been awfully quiet for a while, now. And you’ve been shifting from lovesick sighs to worried looks now and then. What’s wrong?”

Marinette sighed, she really couldn’t hide anything from the cute little entity that went with her everywhere. That might actually be a good thing, the girl thought. Tikki always managed to calm down her nerves, even at risk of being akumatised.

“It’s just...” Marinette started, looking down at her feet, “I’ve had this weird feeling ever since Adrien invited me to go with him to today’s photoshoot, Tikki.” The red kwami couldn’t help but notice the way her holder unconsciously played with the present she’d received from her crush on her birthday. “Don’t get me wrong! It’s  _ amazing _ that I get to spend a whole day with Adrien, just the two of us. And… well, his assistant, and the photographers, and make up artists, and general staff of the set...” She let out an awkward laugh.

After a few seconds of silence, however, the noirette shook her head slightly. “Seriously! I’m ecstatic! But… I can’t help but feel that something is bound to go terribly wrong. I’m worried, Tikki.” The baker’s daughter confided in her kwami.

The little magical creature gave it some thought. It was true Marinette was a very intuitive girl, one of the reasons she was capable of identifying an akuma’s hiding place in such short amounts of time; but she also had the tendency of getting sidetracked and overthinking everything at least twice when it came to Adrien. So there was that.

“Well,” Tikki spoke up, “it might just be your usual awkward self acting up, Marinette. You do get all worked up whenever Adrien’s involved.” The kwami of creation reminded her chosen. “So saying you’re just actually worrying about what might go wrong with him today is a pretty safe bet.”

“But Tikki, this is far deeper and more serious than my usual awkwardness around Adrien! I can feel it!”

“What do you mean?”

“Whenever I’m freaking out about messing up with Adrien, I get super nervous and panicky. Then my mind starts coming up with crazy, dramatic scenarios where I could earn Adrien’s scorn forever and lose my chances with him, and with my chances with Adrien gone so are our house, my perfect married life, our three kids and our hamster!” The poor girl was panting from exhaustion when she finished her rambling.

“And this isn’t like that?”

“No.” Marinette explained once she had regained her breath. “This time it feels actually… dark, and dangerous. I don’t know Tikki, this is really creeping me out.”

“If it makes you feel better, Marinette, we can always keep an eye out in case there are any extra dangerous or suspicious akumas. Maybe you’re just stressed from fighting Hawk Moth and his akumatised villains all the time, after all, you are just a teenager!” The little red creature tried to ease her mind.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Thank you, Tikki.”

“Anytime, Marinette.” The kwami smiled at her. “So, you’re not freaking out about being alone with Adrien?”

“I’m actually a lot calmer than I thought I’d be!” Marinette stated confidently as she put her hands on her hips, a proud smile on her lips. “I’ve been thinking about it and Chat was right.”

“Chat?” Tikki raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, Chat.” Marinette giggled. “The reason why I mess up so much about Adrien is because, as you very well put it, I’m always overthinking when I’m with him. So far, the only times I’ve actually managed to hold a proper conversation with him were the ones when I treated him as a friend, not the… amazing, kind, incredibly hot boy I’m hopelessly in love with...” She finished with a lovestruck sigh.

“Marinette, your crush is showing.”

“Oh, right! Sorry.” The aspiring designer apologised sheepishly. “But that’s exactly what I mean! If I think of methods to win Adrien’s heart, I only make things worse.  _ But _ , whenever I’m myself around him, things go much more naturally between us!”

“But I thought you feared that if Adrien thought of you as a friend, then you might lose him to Kagami...” Tikki tilted her head to the side, confusion apparent in her features.

“But that’s just it, Tikki!” The pigtailed girl cheerfully exclaimed. “The reason Adrien and Kagami are so close -well, aside from the slightly unfair fact that their parents spend a lot of time together and, therefore, so do they-, is because Kagami doesn’t get lost in her own fantasy world like I do. She actually manages to naturally act as his friend! That sure makes getting closer to someone a lot easier...” The blue-eyed teen muttered to herself.

“Is that why you’re wearing the charm he made you?”

After all the time they’d been waiting for Adrien to come, the little kwami hadn’t missed how Marinette hadn’t stopped fidgeting with the chain on her wrist. Even now her left hand was preoccupied with it.

“Yeah...” Marinette replied as she rubbed the back of her head with her right hand, the arm that wore the boy’s present. “It’s just another reason why I’m trying to calm down about my crush.” She brought the bracelet closer to her face to have a good look at it. “Adrien values whatever I do for him a lot, because it comes from a friend. So, I figured I should value what he does for me as something precious from a friend, too.

“That way, if we end up together, it’ll become even more valuable to me. Because it will symbolise the way our feelings for each other grew. And, on the other hand, if I never get the chance to date Adrien, then the memories of it won’t be tainted by heartbreak. Because I would have taken it as a present from a very dear friend, not as false confirmation that my feelings for him were mutual.”

Tikki was awed by Marinette’s decision; in all her years serving Ladybugs, very few of them had taken decisions similar to the young girl’s when it came to their loved ones. Especially if their love was unrequited.

The little magic being smiled at her holder, touched and proud of her. “That is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard, Marinette.”

The pigtailed girl was about to reply when she heard her name being called.

Sure enough, as she turned her head to the sound of that, oh, so familiar voice, she could see the very same boy they had been talking about barely a minute before standing not too far away.

Adrien was as charming as ever as he smiled at her from his car, holding the door out for her. A silent, yet chivalrous invitation to get inside with him and start with their day.

After discreetly breathing in and out a few times in hopes of calming down her racing heart, Marinette got in the car alongside the model. Ready to make the most of the photoshoot.

She just hoped that the gnawing feeling in the back of her head would disappear. Or even better; be mistaken.

* * *

The drive to the building where the photoshoot was going to take place was much more silent and awkward than what the model had expected. It certainly wasn’t like Marinette to be so quiet around him. Normally, she would be trying to speak to him, even if her nervous and clumsy nature made her stutter and get tongue-tied. 

Adrien had always found that to be one of her most endearing traits. 

But given their current situation, he couldn’t help but feel like he’d done something wrong. Like the time he played the joke on her and unintentionally embarrassed her when they were at the Grévin Museum. It was also similar to how quiet Marinette had been that same day on the ride home, even if they had already talked things out when she’d suddenly gone silent.

Despite the fact that they couldn’t spend that much time together due to his tight scheduling, the girl beside him was one of his dearest friends, and he’d do anything to make sure she felt comfortable around him. 

Just like she always did her best to make him feel included.

“Everything alright, Marinette?”

“Huh?” She turned her head towards him, looking a little out of sorts. “O-Oh, yeah! I’m doing line! I-I m-mean, fine!” Marinette stuttered for what might’ve been the millionth time since she met Adrien. “Why… why do you ask, Adrien?”

“It’s just, you’re awfully quiet, Marinette.” The blond then furrowed his brow, suddenly worried. “Is it because you actually didn’t want to come and I pressured you into coming? If so, I am so,  _ so _ sorry, Marinette. I didn’t mean to pressure you into anything!” 

“What?! No, no, not at all!” The noirette tried to reassure him. “It’s not that I didn’t wanna come with you, because, really, I love yo- your company!” She corrected all too quickly and not-so-subtly. Argh! How on Earth did Kagami manage to not let her crush show around Adrien every single day?! “I… I’m just a little worried, that’s all.”

“You’re worried? About what?”

“What… what if something goes terribly wrong because of me?”

Adrien was even more confused now. “What could possibly go wrong because of you?” 

“You know me, Adrien; I’m a total klutz! I could trip over the cameras’ cables and ruin the shooting, I could be asked to move some make-up and accidentally drop it on the designs, I could slip up and complain about how tasteless the food is- because, honestly, I know they’re members of the fashion industry, not world-renowned chefs, but they  _ at least _ must have some taste buds!- or even worse! What if they ask me to bring them coffee and I mix them up and I give a regular coffee to someone who specifically asked for decaf?! _ I could ruin their sleeping cycle, Adrien!  _ Or maybe-.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Let me stop you right there, Marinette. None of that is going to happen because you’re going there as my friend, not my father’s latest intern.” The boy tried to ease her thoughts, as he put his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eye, not knowing he was actually sending her heart in a frenzy. “They all know you’re gonna be there to enjoy the shoot and spend some time with me. So, there’s nothing to worry about.”

The young Agreste sent her a warm smile, and Marinette couldn’t help but return it with a grateful one of her own. Much more at ease now.

“Thank you, Adrien. I really needed that.”

“You’re welcome, Marinette. And you are right; the food there is horrible!”

At that they both cracked up, not being capable of containing their laughter.

As they kept laughing and joking as good friends do, even if one of them secretly hoped to be much more, the car finally parked in front of the building where the session would take place. Both teens recognised it immediately; Montparnasse Tower. The place where they’d lost their memories and kissed their partner for reasons unknown as Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Neither of the teens could hide their amazement towards the enormous building, since they had failed to properly enjoy it during the class’ field trip due to Oblivio’s attack. Even if they had missed their visit while fighting the villain, they still remembered the information that Mademoiselle Bustier had told them prior to the day of the visit.

Montparnasse Tower was the second highest skyscraper in Paris, being 209 m tall; it had 58 floors, the highest of which included wonders such as a gastronomic and panoramic restaurant- Le Ciel de Paris -, a balcony with a heliport (where they had battled against the memory-erasing akuma) and one of the most breathtaking views in all of Paris; especially at nighttime.

  
  


The Gabriel shooting would take place at the 37th floor, one reserved to office work, because the theme for the photoshoot was related to formal clothing, especially suits and anything that would remind you of an adult’s everyday life. 

  
  


Even if Marinette found it a little bit strange that Adrien, a teenager, of all people had been chosen to participate in that day’s work, given the line’s intended target, she soon remembered that it was far from the boy’s first time modelling a suit. After all, that was exactly what he was wearing the day her derby hat debuted. 

  
  


And his son had long been the face of Gabriel Agreste’s brand, anyways.

  
  


As they made their way inside and to the 37th floor, the baker’s daughter could easily tell those who were going to work with the fashion brand that day and those who actually worked at the tower apart. The people from the first group were very busy, running around everywhere to get what they needed to do their job. At first glance, every intern was in a hurry; many of them were carrying boxes with several orders of coffee to-go for their bosses and the professionals working with them; others were following said bosses around, scribbling down their every word, those who worked with more technical employees were aiding them at assembling the stage for the shoot, the lights, or even the cameras. They were also several make-up artists getting their tools ready to start as soon as they were told. And the people they worked for had an air of confidence and grace you could only expect from true professionals in a field. Moreover, those who happened to actually work at the office seemed to be leaving the building for the time being. Marinette deduced they’d been given the day off due to the scheduled meeting with the  _ Agreste _ line.

  
  


The noirette couldn’t deny it; it truly was the perfect place for an office-based clothing line. The place was spacious, with large windows which provided some nice, natural light and a great view of the city below them. The floor was covered by a deep grey carpet, adding to that serious vibe the photographers were striving to achieve. And there were enough different areas to work on different angles of the type of lifestyle they wanted to mimic.

  
  


“It’s a relief you arrived on time, Adrien.”

  
  


The young model couldn’t believe his ears, he’d recognised that voice anywhere! But years of experience had taught him to keep his hopes low, it might as well be just another one of his father’s video calls. As they turned around, they were both surprised by the presence of none other than the reclusive fashion genius himself; Gabriel Agreste. Followed by his trusty assistant.

  
  


While Adrien was speechless, given he’d only seen his father out of the manor once since his mother disappeared, Marinette had reached a new level of freaking out. _ Oh, great! Now I have to keep an eye out from making a fool of myself in front of Adrien  _ and _ my idol! Who also happens to be his father… Just great. _

  
  


Nevertheless, nerve-wracking circumstances or not, the aspiring designer had been raised right, the least she could do was thank Monsieur Agreste for letting her see the process. “T-thank you very m-much for having me today, M-Monsieur Agreste. It truly is an h-honour.”

  
  


“Ah, yes. Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng. The pleasure is all mine, not everyday I come across such a promising young lady.” The designer slightly smiled down at her, although no one but himself and Nathalie was truly aware of the real meaning hidden behind it.

  
  


“I trust you will enjoy your visit, Mlle.” He continued. “Please, if you need anything, do not hesitate to let my assistant, Nathalie, know. She will be more than willing to help you with anything you might need. Right, Nathalie?” He turned his head slightly to the woman next to him.

  
  


“That is correct, sir.” The woman with glasses nodded.

  
  


“T-thank you, M. Agreste. But I think I’ll be fine, I don’t want to be a bother.” The noirette quickly tried to ease the man’s worries, throwing her arms up in defense.

  
  


“Suit yourself, young lady. But remember that you can always count on Nathalie if you need anything during the photoshoot.” The stoic designer then proceeded to go back to what the teenagers assumed was his personal studio at the building, Nathalie right behind him. But before leaving the two teens alone once again, he turned to his son, “Adrien, remember that M. Romano will be in charge of your shoot today, you know he can be a tad… eccentric with what he’s looking for in the perfect picture. Do as he says, the sooner that man is pleased with your work, the sooner we will finish.”

  
  


And with that, Gabriel Agreste was gone once again.

  
  


Adrien just looked down, a disappointed frown adorning his features. As much as he hated to admit it, he was a little envious of the attention and treatment Marinette had received from his father. That attentiveness and little smile he’d shown to his friend was far more than what he’d seen from him in months. Even if he tried to hide it and go on with his life, for his family’s sake, he greatly missed the days when his mother was with them. Back then, even if he still wasn’t allowed to go to school, he didn’t feel nearly as lonely as he did now in the presence of his father. Back then, they were still father and son.

  
  


“Adrien? Are you okay?”

  
  


Marinette’s concerned tone brought him back to reality. How could he possibly think like that? If anything, he should be happy that at least she was treated fairly by him, unlike poor Nino… Besides, he’d promised her he’d take her with him to the photoshoot, and, thus, allow her to be nearer her dream of becoming a part of the fashion industry, and that was what mattered.

  
  


“Yeah… Don’t worry.” The blond’s gaze softened and he soon smiled at her too. “I should probably go change, though.” He took a step closer towards her and rested his hands on her shoulders, ignoring the feeling the noirette got from such close intimacy. “Why don’t you go to the place where the shoot is taking place? I’ll make sure to spend some time with you as soon as my break starts. Okay?”

  
  


If this boy kept smiling at her like that, it’d be impossible to be just friends with him, mainly because she could already feel her knees melting. “Y-yeah, sure…” Marinette replied in a daze. 

“Great! See you in a bit!”

  
  


After the model went to change his clothes, the noirette turned around to go in the direction of the photoshoot. Only to bump with someone. But as she was about to apologise, she recognised the person she had just bumped with, and the smile on her face quickly vanished.

  
  


“Lila? What are  _ you _ doing here?” She asked dryly.

  
  


The Italian girl just chuckled, feeling smug. “I’m Monsieur Agreste’s muse, remember? I’ve a lot more reasons to be here than you, Marinette.”

  
  


The feeling of uncertainty had returned, but Marinette would not back down in front of that liar. The circumstances were very similar to the day the brunette was akumatised in Chameleon and declared war at her, in fact. Just like then, Lila had a condescending look and a smirk on her face, and she had her arms crossed. But just like the aspiring designer had done then, she would not let her get the better of her. She would never have that much power over her.

  
  


“If you think I’m going to let my guard down around you, Lila, and let you cause any trouble today, you are sorely mistaken.” Marinette narrowed her eyes at the brunette, hoping she would go on her way and let her be, for once.

  
  


Instead, the green-eyed teen got close to her, enough to whisper in her ear. “You’d better not, Marinette. I told you I’d make your life miserable unless you played along, but you chose to be nothing but a pain in the neck.” She chuckled. “Not like that’s got you anywhere, though. After all, everyone is still eating right out of the palm of my hand, while _ you  _ keep losing your credibility and friends each. Passing. Day. And soon enough, I will have fulfilled my promise and I will have taken you down. But remember, Marinette: I gave you a choice.”

  
  


With that, the attention seeker Marinette had come to hate more than her lifelong bully stepped away, and had, unfortunately, succeeded in putting her blue-eyed rival on edge. She made her way towards the place of the photoshoot as fast as she could, knowing full well what Lila’s words and threats could do to her. She had a bit of trouble finding the place, though. That place was huge and made it very easy to get lost...which she did...Twice. Luckily, she soon calmed down when she watched the boy she loved model.

  
  


Even so, that gnawing feeling was only growing stronger.

  
  


As the brunette made her way to a certain room, she could barely hide the smirk on her face or contain the dark snicker that was threatening to come out. There was nothing like getting under that goody-goody’s skin. No, scratch that. There was one thing that was better than that; watching her whole world crumble. And the best part? That virtuous moron hadn’t even noticed something was suddenly missing. It had been just  _ too _ easy!

  
  


This was going to be fun.

* * *

Marinette was sure it was very easy to tell she was a lovesick girl by the awestruck expression on her face and the hand she had close to her heart. Heck, she was probably even literally drooling! And the fact that M. Agreste’s assistant, Nathalie, she recalled, was there beside her, didn’t help her in the least. But she couldn’t help it. Not with Adrien modelling that suit right in front of her…

  
  


He was wearing a grey lounge suit, black and shiny moccasins and a silver watch as an accessory. But, obviously, the suit was a sight to behold; it consisted of a simple white shirt under a grey vest; he wore a pair of grey pants, and a three-button jacket. A much more formal choice. That type of suit could be worn with or without tie, but in Adrien’s case, he was using a black one. Something Marinette related to it being a line thought with adults in mind, and to Monsieur Agreste’s fondness of them, judging from the one he always wore.

  
  


Nevertheless, the young boy looked dazzling. 

  
  


Which made it all the more difficult to the girl to keep her romantic feelings in line…

  
  


By the time M. Romano had finally called for a break -something to do with eating actual pasta, instead of the imaginary spaguetti he kept mentioning to Adrien-, the blue-eyed girl had to subtly shake her head to wake up from her fantasy land and, at least, try to act normal around her crush.

  
  


“Hey!” The blond greeted her. “Sorry if that was too boring, Marinette. I know you prefer the creative process of fashion rather than its photography…” He sheepishly apologised, averting his gaze from her as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“N-Not al all! I-I mean, sure, this isn’t exactly my favourite part of the industry but…” She trailed off, “I’m not complaining.” The girl finished with a dopey smile.

  
  


_ Gosh, that just sounded super creepy, didn’t it?! Now he has figured out that I like him for sure! Nice going, Marinette! You and your hardly repressed hormones! _

  
  


“Well, I’m glad. Hey, wanna go grab something to eat before the break ends?”

  
  


Before she could answer, their conversation was interrupted by a voice neither of them wanted to hear outside of school.

  
  


“Hi, Adrien!” Lila said as she made a point of totally ignoring Marinette’s presence and got close to the boy. Way too close to be respecting his personal space, in Marinette’s opinion.

  
  


“Hey, Lila…” Adrien greeted her back, a lot less enthusiastic by seeing her than she was of seeing him, but still trying to be polite. “What are you doing here?”

  
  


“Oh, that! Well, seeing as I’m your father’s current muse, Adrien,” she looked smugly at Marinette when she said that, acknowledging her presence from the first time since their previous encounter some time before, “he told me to be here for today’s photoshoot. I’m sure he wants to use both of us to advertise the line! Considering we have such great chemistry on camera…” She purred, getting even closer to him and making him feel even more uncomfortable, and Marinette’s skin prickle with suspicion even more. 

  
  


If that was even possible.

  
  


As much as she wanted to ignore it, the bad feeling that had haunted Marinette all week was getting stronger by the minute with Lila there. Something wrong was going on, she just knew it.

  
  


Narrowing her eyes, the noirette coughed in an attempt to catch the brunette’s attention and to save the blond boy from her, “Well, Lila, as nice as it is to see you”, she was grateful she didn’t have to hide her sarcasm from Adrien, “we should probably get going. Adrien still has to eat before his break ends and you probably have a lot to do before being ready for your shoot, so… Bye.”

While Lila was busy sneering at her for her subtle remark on the her outer appearance, she hurriedly turned on her heel to get away from her as soon as possible, Adrien close behind her. But as they were about to make their way to the elevator, a new voice interrupted them.

  
  


“Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, Adrien, please, follow me. There is something I would like to show you.”

  
  


They slowly turned to face the fashion designer. He was patiently waiting for them (well, as patiently as he could, from Adrien’s point of view), with Nathalie and an all-too-pleased Lila behind him. The latter wasn’t going to miss her chance to look good in front of his father.

  
  


“Bonjour, Monsieur Agreste. It’s such an honour that you have called me here today.” She said in that overly sugary, overly fake voice of hers.

  
  


“Oh, yes. Mademoiselle Rossi.” The designer turned to look at her. “It’s so good of you to join us. You can come too.”

  
  


“Father, where are we going?” Adrien asked the question on his and Marinette’s minds. “We were about to go and eat-.”

  
  


“Adrien, don’t be ungrateful.” His father coldly scolded him, without even turning to look at him as the five of them walked towards that mysterious destination. “I merely attempt to show your friend something that will be of her liking, given her interest in the fashion industry. You should be thanking me for going out of my way and doing this for her on top of allowing her presence, as you requested.” 

  
  


The way he said that last line was so cold that it made Marinette shiver. It was the kind of wording that would suggest that her friend’s father was actually annoyed by her presence, but was holding himself back for the sake of his son. It was as if he were subtly blaming Adrien for it.

  
  


The pigtailed girl’s heart squeezed unpleasantly inside her chest, and a sad frown adorned her features when she turned her gaze on the boy she loved. He looked so hurt by his father’s words, yet, it looked like he was actually used to them. It all made it the more heartbreaking.

But she couldn’t do anything about it because that forsaken feeling inside her was practically screaming at her now.

  
  


_ Run. _

  
  


_ Don’t even look back. _

  
  


_ Run now or you will regret it. _

  
  


_ JUST RUN! _

  
  


“We’re here.” 

  
  


Nathalie’s voice put an end to her thoughts. The blue-eyed girl sighed, relieved that it was over. But another part of her told her it was actually far from over. She did her best to ignore that voice.

  
  


“This,” Gabriel gestured to a door behind him, “is where we keep some of the outfits for a future shoot that will again take place in this building, but with a different scenario in mind.” He explained.

  
  


“That way the brand will be taking advantage of Montparnasse Tower’s many facilities and save an impressive amount of time in looking for the perfect settings.” Nathalie finished for him.

  
  


“I thought, considering you apparent talent at sewing, Mlle Dupain-Cheng, that you would find this much more entertaining than watching my son model for the brand, am I mistaken?” Gabriel asked.

  
  


As if she could be honest about what she thought of the green-eyed boy’s modelling… 

  
  


“Wow, t-thank you so much, sir.” She didn’t know what to say. On the one hand, a chance like this could only be a dream for most aspiring designers like her; but, on the other hand, Marinette had just witnessed how Gabriel treated  _ his own son. _ It didn’t feel right to receive such honour and praise from him… “I-it means a lot, sir. Really.” She finished awkwardly.

  
  


After that little exchange, the fashion guru began explaining the goal the brand strived to achieve with the future clothing line behind that door. But Marinette was too busy side-glancing Lila to pay him enough attention. That liar had been silent ever since they started making their way to the room. Too silent. Her attitude alone, that smirk she hid as a genuine, innocent smile and her confident stance spoke volumes of her intentions. Even if she didn’t know just  _ what _ exactly her intentions were…

  
  


“Without further ado, allow me to show you what I have been working on…” The moment he opened the door, everyone present gasped, flabbergasted.

  
  


The room was an utter chaos. Many of the mannequins with the designs Gabriel had been working on were lying on the floor, the clothes and fabrics on all of them were either shredded, torn, or stained with dying material. In other words, the collection was completely ruined.

  
  


As everyone stared at the mess in shock, Lila discreetly made her way to a certain place in the room she knew all too well and crouched down, picking up something from the floor, a smirk on her face. But she couldn’t give herself away like that, it would be a complete waste of her efforts. So, instead, she gasped, “Oh, no!”

  
  


Now that everyone was looking at her, she got up and turned around, showing what she had picked from her floor: a bracelet. A very familiar bracelet. “Marinette… Isn’t this bracelet yours?” She interrogated the blue-eyed girl, masking her satisfaction with a horrified tone of voice and covering her mouth with her free hand.

  
  


Marinette stared at the piece of jewelry wide-eyed. What was that doing there? She hadn’t taken it off at all! But with a quick glance at her right wrist she soon confirmed that Adrien’s present was nowhere in sight. How did she-?  _ Of course, _ she suddenly understood what happened, _ she took it when she got close to me! _

  
  


The feeling came back, now it all made sense.

  
  


_ I tried to warn you. _

  
  


“How could you-?!”

  
  


But she was cut off mid-rant by Gabriel’s booming voice. “Mlle Dupain-Cheng, care to explain yourself?”

  
  


“Sir, I-I didn’t do it, I swear. I couldn’t possibly do it!”

  
  


“Marinette is telling the truth, Father!” Adrien tried to defend her, this whole situation was disgustingly familiar…”She was with me, watching the shoot, the whole time!”

  
  


“But Adrien,” It was Nathalie’s turn to speak, “Marinette did show up late to the photoshoot. For all we know she could’ve come here, damaged the designs, and go to the shoot.”

  
  


“I was only late because I got lost!” She was soon becoming desperate, they had to believe her! “This place is huge and-”

  
  


“Oh, Marinette.” Lila interrupted her, pretending to be devastated by the aspiring designer’s supposed actions. She was at the verge of reaching her breaking point, and she knew it. All she had to do was spur her a little bit and she would be done for. “As much as I’d like to, I can’t possibly believe you. That is such as poor excuse! You’d think that after managing to do all this, you would be able to come up with a better excuse than that…” She added some unshed tears for good measure.

  
  


Marinette saw red. That little lying pest! It was her who’d done it so she could frame her! Just like she framed her of copying in Miss Bustier’s exam, of pushing her down the stairs, and of stealing her pendant barely a month ago.

  
  


“It was  _ you _ , Lila!” She yelled, pointing her finger at the Italian student. “It was you and you’re trying to blame it all on me! Just like you did last month at school…” The noirette accused through gritted teeth and narrowed eyes.

  
  


And there it was.

  
  


“Oh, my… Marinette! How could you accuse me of doing something like that?!” The brunette gasped, putting both of her hands on her chest. “I always suspected you might be jealous of me because I’m so close to Adrien, but I never thought you would actually be such a heartless person!” Her crocodile tears were really selling her side of the story, just like always.

  
  


“J-jealous?!” Marinette all but screeched, “I’m not jealous of you, Lila! I just can’t stand liars. And you!  _ You _ are the biggest liar I have ever met!” 

  
  


_ “Silence!” _

  
  


Gabriel’s voice echoed through the room, silencing them all. He turned to Marinette, his gaze the coldest one the girl had ever seen. Even Hawk Moth’s had more emotion hidden behind his mask the few times she’d actually faced him than the fashion designer’s at the very moment.

  
  


“I hope this serves as a lesson, Adrien. When you’re on top, you have to be careful who you trust. You never know who is a true friend, and who is nothing but a leech, waiting for the perfect moment to take advantage of you.”

  
  


“But Father-!” He had to defend Marinette. He had to make his father see reason, Marinette would never do such a thing! He had to do something to protect her. To protect that sweet, caring smile that warmed his heart when he was at his lowest. He had to do something!  _ Anything” _

  
  


“Enough!” He silenced his son with a motion of his hand, “Mlle Dupain-Cheng, I allow you to watch my work, and _ this _ is how you repay me?! By manipulating my son?! By destroying my work?! By verbally attacking one of my models?! I want you out of my sight right this instant!

  
  


“And, unless you want me to hold you uncountable for the price of the damaged fabrics, you had better stay away from my son until you both graduate! Oh, and I do suggest you look for another career choice, mademoiselle, because you will not set a foot in any fashion school or brand even if it is the last thing I do! Out,  _ now! _ ”

  
  


She could hear the sound of her heart shattering and sense the tears welling up in her eyes. Her dream was already over before it even started, she would never be able to be a fashion designer… And her relationship with Adrien? If she had a hard time getting closer to him before, now she wasn’t even _ allowed _ to approach him… And all because of what? A despicable attention whore who swore to make a Hell out of the lives of whoever didn’t adore her. 

  
  


She quickly scanned the room. Adrien looked devastated, she knew that she believed him. He was always there for her. But, this time, not even that put at ease her aching heart. His father’s assistant looked devoid of all emotion, and she was too scared to even face Gabriel. But she made the mistake of looking at Lila. The look on her face proved she was all-too-pleased with herself and the results her lies had brought onto her rival. She had a condescending smirk and her eyes gleamed with pride. The liar even went as far as mocking her, mouthing a message only Marinette could see or understand.

  
  


_ “I warned you.” _

  
  


Without even realising it, too numb to actually feel anything but pain or rage, the noirette turned on her heel and run. She run with no real destination. She run like it were the only thing that could make her feel alive, safe. She run like she had nothing else. In a sense, that was exactly it.

  
  


She managed to make her way to the bathrooms of the 37th floor. Locking herself in one of the cabins, she began to cry. Because that was all she felt she could do; cry.

  
  


And it was so  _ unfair _ .

* * *

The both of them had actually had to make an effort to hide their grins before the chaos that was ensuing right before them. Lila Rossi always delivered the negative emotion they needed, after all. Never matter if it was hers, or somebody else’s.

  
  


Finally, Marinette Dupain-Cheng was at their mercy, and nothing would be able to stop them this time.

  
  


“I knew I could count on you to look for a distant location where we could begin with our plan, Nathalie.” The man praised his assistant as they entered the bureau she had reserved for that day’s events.

  
  


“Thank you, sir. But it wasn’t difficult. This is a very spacious building, after all. Now, what matters is that we unleash Marinette’s wrath and, therefore, your greatest akuma ever. It is high time Paris trembled before a true supervillain!”

  
  


“Indeed.” A macabre smile adorned his features. “Nooroo, Dark Wings Rise!” Once the transformation was complete, he stood before the room’s windows, hiding behind their stores. “Now, all that is left to do is wait until Marinette’s fury has reached its peak.”

  
  


Not that far away from them, in the floor’s bathroom, that same girl was crying her eyes out. Unable to control her tears any longer.

  
  


Why did such things have to happen to  _ her _ ?

  
  


Had it been, really, such a grave mistake that she’d treated Lila harshly as Ladybug when she was lying to Adrien back in the park?

  
  


Because, to her, it was starting to feel as the only time she’d had the chance to get even with the Italian girl.

  
  


She still couldn’t believe it! How could someone cause so much strife and lie on a daily basis and still face no consequences for it?! Making those she disliked miserable, instead. And yet, here she was… All she wanted to do was protect her friends and now she dealt with much more stress and bullshit than she did during four years as Chloé’s main bullying target.

  
  


Her friends…

  
  


The ones who had abandoned her for something shinier. The ones that preferred to listen to some new girl with astounding, hardly realistic delusions of greatness over her. The ones that had accused her of being nothing but jealous of the attention she was getting from Adrien…

  
  


And Adrien… All her troubles would have ended a lot sooner if he had just been a good enough friend to side with her and call Lila out on her lies. He literally just had to say that Ladybug had called her out on her bullshit right in front of him! But, nooooooo.  _ Let’s protect little poor Lila and her lying ass! Exposing her will only hurt her more, and it wouldn’t do any good! _

  
  


What about what her lies were doing to  _ her _ ?! Didn’t she matter in the least!?

  
  


But then, she remembered when he sat with her in the back, instead of in the front row with Lila and closer to their friends. She remembered how he promised they would be together in this. She remembered how he tried to prove her innocence when Lila had framed her a month ago. She remembered how devastated he looked just a moment ago when his father had lashed out on her. 

  
  


He cared about her. He really did.

  
  


What was she doing? She couldn’t possibly be blaming her friends! It wasn’t their fault. They were being lied to, manipulated, toyed with to do whatever  _ she _ wanted them to. They didn’t choose to isolate and betray her out of malice; they were nothing but pawns!

  
  


_ Her _ pawns.

  
  


It was all  _ her _ fault.

  
  


She was the one who decided to make her suffer out of pettiness. She was the one pulling the strings, turning her into a target for akumatisation. Marinette had given her a chance to redeem herself, Ladybug had given her a chance to redeem herself,  _ Adrien _ had given her a chance to redeem herself.

  
  


But, apparently, being alpha bitch was much more fun than being a decent person.

  
  


As much as she wanted to stop the tears and negative emotions, knowing full well how dangerous they truly were, the poor girl just couldn’t. Everything was just too recent and felt too vivid to ignore the many feelings battling for dominance.

  
  


Marinette was the innocent getting blamed for someone else’s devious actions!

  
  


Lila was the culprit that went unpunished.

  
  


Hard as she tried, she couldn’t extinguish the fire of her anger. She couldn’t put an end to the outrage. And she felt she couldn’t do anything against the injustice. And that was what frustrated her the most.

  
  


The  _ injustice _ .

That was all he needed. “Ah, the lies, the isolation, the hurt… And most importantly, the righteous anger of an innocent forced to carry with the sins of another. I’ve been waiting so long for you, Marinette. But worry not, soon, we will both finally get what we’ve been looking for.”

  
  


Having said that, he called for one of his white butterflies to come closer, and, once it was resting on his palm, he infected it with his power, “Fly, my little akuma! And blacken her pure heart!”

  
  


While her chosen kept on crying, Tikki was the first to notice the sound of flapping wings approaching, “Marinette, an akuma! You need to calm down, think happy thoughts!”

  
  


At the sound of her kwami’s alert, the young girl did her best to keep her negative emotions at bay, but she couldn’t. Everytime she focused on something, memories of Lila and her lies would taint it.

  
  


Her friends.

  
  


_ With just a few words and crocodile tears she had managed to turn them against her. _

  
  


Her family.

  
  


_ Even her parents believed what she said and took pity of her. _

  
  


Adrien!

  
  


_ “...And Adrien will soon be mine.” _

  
  


She couldn’t take it… not anymore. With a heavy heart and a choked sob, she took off her earrings and handed them to Tikki. 

  
  


“Marinette, what are you doing?!” The little kwami gasped, horrified.

  
  


“Tikki, you know Chat Noir’s civilian identity. Look for him and ask for help. I… I can’t do this anymore…” She said in between sobs, the akuma getting closer and closer by the minute.

  
  


“But, Marinette! I-I’m sure if you just try a little harder to focus on something positive-!”

  
  


“I’m so sorry, Tikki.” She cut her off. “But I can’t fight it anymore. I’m so tired of trying to get back up again, only to be pushed back down… Please, take the miraculous. At least, the akuma can be cleansed.”

  
  


With one last heartbroken look at her chosen, the little red creature disappeared. Leaving her all alone with the akuma. With Hawk Moth.

  
  


The moment the dark butterfly touched her purse, her negative emotions became tenfold stronger, and her will and clarity weakened considerably. So this is why it was so difficult to resist an akumatisation. The offer was so tempting, and she could already feel the power she needed to put an end to that brat’s reign of terror once and for all. But she still needed to agree to the supervillain’s offer…

  
  


So close, and yet, so far.

  
  


"Princess Justice, I am Hawk Moth. How many times have you suffered by Lila Rossi's lies and deceit? How many times have you wished for the pain of doubt, isolation and injustice to go away, only to receive twice the amount not long after?

"Well, I am giving you the power to avenge every single person who's ever been wronged, especially yourself. All I ask in return, Your Highness, is that you bring me Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculouses. Now, do we have a deal?"

A sinister smile appeared on the heartbroken girl's face, her tears still falling.

"May Doomsday begin!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed it. Though, gotta warn you, chapter three might take me even longer because I want to work on a one-shot for another fandom first. And...I'm pretty unpredictable when it comes to chapter lengths... Just look at this baby! Over 7000 words! Woo-hoo!  
But worry not, because I actually know what I want to happen next chapter, so, that's some time I save myself.  
Thank you so much and until next time! :D


	3. The Evidence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, there!   
I know, I know. It's definitely taken me quite some time to have this done, but I did warn you I was unpredictable. And, admittedly, I procrastinated while working on that one-shot for that other fandom, and by the time I was done with it, the fandom became active again, which led me to write more one-shots for it.  
But worry not! I have the lay out of the story figured out! And, while I am still unpredictable when it comes to updates, I am definitely finishing this fic.  
Hope you stay with me 'til the end!  
And please, enjoy ;)

As she allowed the purple mist to engulf her, she could feel every single emotion increasing tenfold. Her resolve was now stronger, her anger more intense than a wildfire. She now possessed laser-focus, making her already strategical mind more active than ever; the perfect plan materialising in her mind even before the transformation was complete. And, most importantly, her lust for revenge was the best motivation she’d ever had.

This time, _nothing_ would be able to stop her.

As the dark cloud disappeared, it was obvious that the kind and sweet girl everyone used to know was no longer there. And, maybe, she’d never come back.

What once was the girl’s usual outfit had been replaced by an ensemble whose upper part resembled a qi pao; the coat as black as night and reaching down her waist, where it revealed a flowing, silky white dress; its front peeking out from the coat’s bodice. The qi pao’s sleeves were long and wide enough to conceal the girl’s hands –hinting on the unpredictable nature the akuma had given them– and they were adorned with a giant, purple butterfly silhouette on the side each. The hem of the sleeves, coat, and neck was purple as well. Her pink and black flats were gone, a pair of knee-length, high-heeled dark boots with their heels and toes painted lilac were now in their place.

The identity which was once protected by the red and black polka-dotted mask belonging to Paris’ dear superheroine was now covered by a black, butterfly-shaped mask; signalling the girl’s current alliance. Her trademark pigtails were gone; a high, tight bun now held her ebony hair in place, accompanied by an obsidian tiara with a purple jewel, in the shape of one of Hawk Moth’s corrupted butterflies. The purse that was the source of her power had turned from pink to purple, changing the aspiring designer’s logo for three black akumas, each one replacing the original design’s motifs. And those bluebell eyes that used to be full of nothing but care and compassion were now ice cold.

Where once stood Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Princess Justice had taken her place, and she was not going to give up her new position any time soon.

Princess Justice took a minute to take her new appearance in, now that she knew what it felt like to be akumatised, she understood as well why supervillains had such good control over their powers: in was something intuitive. The moment the akuma corrupted you, you already knew what you were capable of.

Meaning she knew just what to do to make that liar pay for her crimes.

“Remember, Princess Justice,” Hawk Moth called to her, “you can have your revenge, as long as you bring me Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculouses.”

A smirk appeared on her face, “Don’t worry, Hawk Moth. I will hold up my end of the bargain. All I ask in return, Your Honour, is that you allow me to show the world Lila Rossi’s true colours first. The truth must be known…”

“As you wish, Your Highness.”

At the sound of his approval, a wicked grin made its way to Princess Justice’s face. She knew just what had to be done in order to expose Lila as the villain she was once and for all. Now that her mind wasn’t clouded by her shortcomings as a mere civilian, she finally understood what had been missing: irrefutable proof. She almost felt like laughing, who knew Alya would be right about that?

Luckily for her, this time, she knew just the way to get it.

She reached for her purse, grabbing from its insides a very familiar weapon. From a closer inspection, it resembled a spray can with a clock attached to one side and a grip; appearance-wise, it was closer to being an Arts-&-Crafts project than a weapon, but it served its purpose well.

Tightening her hold on Time Tagger’s spray can, she fired. Soon, the graffiti of a specific date appeared on the bathroom stall’s door. Princess Justice smiled, it was now or never. She approached the door and touched the graffiti, knowing it would teleport her to her desired destination.

* * *

When she opened her eyes, she knew she was just where she wanted to be. The first day of school, and the day Volpina became the bane of her existence.

But this time she made sure to arrive sooner than her previous-self did, she had to make sure she got evidence of everything Lila lied about. And that meant being present in every conversation she had with her classmates and friends.

Taking advantage of her position, just a few metres away from the school but still far enough to not be spotted by anyone, she reached for her purse once again, taking out two more objects right after storing Time Tagger’s weapon away. In this occasion, she took a flower-shaped brooch and a black and white cell phone; Vanisher and Lady Wifi’s belongings, respectively.

As soon as she turned on the phone and put on the brooch in order to conceal herself, a small wave of dizziness washed over her. She figured her power’s flaw was that using several objects at the same time weakened her, just like carrying several miraculouses did.

She was just glad Hawk Moth couldn’t sense her at that moment. She had a mission to accomplish.

Armed with the accessory and electronic device, she stealthily made her way to the school, and just in time; Lila had just appeared and some of her classmates were already crowding around her to get to know her.

Her heart ached for them, they were just as innocent in this as she was, not knowing they were being taken advantage of because of some girl’s wicked schemes. But she couldn’t think about that, she had to record Lila as she lied to everyone.

And that’s exactly what she did. She spent all the time before her past-self arrived recording the brunette as she shared her delusions of greatness with everyone willing to listen. But she made sure to get every single little gesture she made as she told her lies that could give her true nature away on camera.

Like the moment when that fake smile of hers turned into a smirk as she talked about Prince Ali with Rose and Juleka. Or how her eyebrows furrowed as a sign of pleasure when Chloé began throwing a fit because of the song Jagged Stone had supposedly written about her. Or the condescending tone her voice had taken when she talked to Nino about all the famous Hollywood directors she met over her travels. And she made sure to catch the _mocking_ timbre in which she laughed when Alya interviewed her for the Ladyblog.

Princess Justice could feel her blood boiling hotter and hotter each passing minute. That girl had barely tried to hide her disdain for her friends from the very beginning. And nobody made fools out of her friends. _Nobody_.

Before she could throw herself at Lila and ruin her carefully crafted plan, a new voice interrupted her furious thoughts. Turning her head, she recognised the source of the voice immediately. Adrien had arrived.

Although seeing him calmed the storm inside her a little bit, she couldn’t help but notice the way Lila’s eyes showed but one emotion: desire.

It wasn’t a lovesick puppy stare, she could distinguish that kind of stare from a mile away, especially when it was directed at Adrien. She knew for a fact that was the kind of expression she made when the boy was near –but not near enough to be creepy. She’d seen it on Kagami when they talked about him hanging out. Hell, she even saw it on _Chloé_!

But Lila’s expression spoke volumes of anything but a harmless crush. Her eyes were similar of those of a panther, waiting for the right moment to attack and devour its prey. Lila’s eyes didn’t reflect a teenage crush, they reflected interest and _possessiveness_.

The girl didn’t beat around the bush. As soon as Adrien was alone, she got close to him. So close, in fact, she didn’t waste a minute to start drawing circles on his chest and staring him up and down while the poor boy couldn’t do anything but look very uncomfortable.

Gritting her teeth and clenching the fist that wasn’t holding the cell phone, she recorded that, too. How could anyone believe her when she said she wasn’t interested in Adrien when she did such things in plain daylight was beyond her. But, hey, it still served as more evidence of her lying.

_Huh_, she mused, _now that I think about it, this is the perfect chance to prove _she_ was the one who got Adrien, the boy she supposedly likes, in trouble by stealing his father’s book._

Wasting no time, she jumped from the place she’d been recording from and made her way into the library to position herself on top of the bookshelves to capture what transpired that day from the best possible angle. But not before capturing on camera Lila _practically dragging_ Adrien to the room with her.

From where she stood, Adrien’s back to her, she got everything she needed.

Adrien taking his book out of his bag and trying to hide it when Lila appeared. The way she dismissed doing homework, which they were supposed to be originally _there for_, the moment she took notice of the book. The subtle annoyed frown she made when Adrien praised Ladybug–now that Princess Justice heard him better, she had to refrain herself from squealing–, which prompted her to get closer into his personal space and not-so subtly flirt with him. How, all of a sudden, she decided she had ‘something important’ to tell him about hers and Ladybug’s ‘friendship’. And, most importantly, being above them gave her the perfect view of Lila using her foot to hide Adrien’s book behind her without him knowing, and how she picked it up the moment he was far enough, showing interest at the fox superheroine she found in the book.

Princess Justice turned off the camera just in time, her past-self was currently poking her head out from under the table and talking to Tikki about the book. She did not need to give the lying girl more ammo to use against her.

Knowing she still had some time to spare before Lila and Adrien met at the park, she made it to the principal’s office. What she needed for the next phase of her plan being inside it.

Just as she arrived, Principal Damocles exited the room, closing the door behind him. This would’ve been a setback, if it weren’t because the akumatised girl knew exactly what to do in such case. Once again, she reached to her purse, taking a pen from it. Troblemaker’s pen, to be precise.

Feeling her strength temporarily leave her, she leaned on the wall. Okay, so using several akumatised objects was actually _more_ exhausting than using various miraculouses at a time. Luckily for her, she’d only need more than one artefact to carry out her plan to expose Lila. Once that were done with, she could go back to relying on only one.

Pushing herself off the wall, she clicked on the pen, turning intangible and entering the principal’s office while everyone else was none the wiser. Because she needed at least one free hand for what she had in mind, she stored Lady Wifi’s phone away; Vanisher’s brooch was far more useful at the moment. Clicking the pen, she became tangible again, and proceeded to rummage in the filing cabinet drawers.

“Gotcha!” Princess Justice said as she held out a folder full of papers. “Now, let’s see where Little Miss Show-Off lives…”

She had Lila’s personal information in her hands and, surprisingly enough, there wasn’t any mentions of problems at former schools. _She probably managed to either get everyone to eat out of the palm of her hand, or get rid of whoever didn’t buy her stories_, the blue-eyed supervillain guessed.

What was _not _surprising, on the other hand, was that there wasn’t the slightest mention of any of the brunette’s supposed diseases and disabilities, either. Princess Justice rolled her eyes, _Isn’t there anyone competent enough to compare what she says to her personal data in this school?!_

She closed the documents and put them back where they were, she got what she was looking for. Besides, she should get going to catch Lila as she set herself up for humiliation.

And she did just that. Once she’d got out from Monsieur Damocles’ office and changed Troublemaker’s pen for Lady Wifi’s phone once more, she used her newfound enhanced agility to travel from rooftop to rooftop, always aiming the phone camera at Lila as she entered a jewellery and bought her so-called family heirloom. That way she had proof of what she intended to lie to Adrien about _and_ that the necklace she framed her for stealing wasn’t even her grandmother’s.

As her target made it to the park, so did the dark-haired vigilante. But Princess Justice hid behind the tree opposite from where she once spied on them, that way she would avoid stumbling on her previous-self.

Her position was perfect. She managed to record _everything_. How she took out her newly bought necklace, alongside the Miraculous Grimoire, and put it around her neck. How she immediately hid the book behind her back and threw it into the trashcan when she saw Adrien approaching–an action Marinette never understood, to be honest. Why would anyone take so much pride in their deceiving skills if they weren’t even smart enough to come up with an excuse that would explain why they had something that wasn’t theirs?! Something like, ‘Oh! You forgot this at the library and I picked it up so I could return it to you when we met up!’ Besides, what kind of _moron_ didn’t know books should be treated with respect?! She recorded Lila claiming to be the descendant of a superhero, her badmouthing Ladybug, her so-called _best friend_, without a second thought because it would make said alter ego look better than Paris’ hero. 

She actually felt a rush of satisfaction the moment Ladybug stepped in and began tearing Lila a new one. Back in the day, she genuinely felt remorseful for her actions, but now that she knew that moment of weakness would be the only time she would be able to put that liar in her place, she no longer cared. She had it coming. She also made sure to get on camera when Lila actually had the nerve to call out Ladybug, snarling a ‘How dare you?!’ at her, before taking off. Leaving aside that she had indeed been harsh to her then (again, no regrets), it was quite pathetic seeing the girl actually snarl at the superhero for exposing her when it had been _her_ who’d lied about _Ladybug_ in the first place.

After _that_ crowning moment, she made sure to catch her transforming into Volpina–right after she furiously claimed to _hate_ Ladybug– and harshly rejecting the superheroine’s apology, claiming they would _never_ be _friends_, after being deakumatised on camera for good measure.

But her work wasn’t done just yet. Taking advantage of her enhanced physical abilities, she made it to Lila’s house before she did, using Troublemaker’s pen to get inside. So maybe she was trespassing, but it would all be worth it.

She didn’t have to wait long before the brunette came back, and when she did, the akuma victim had her phone ready to further add charges against her.

“Argh!” Lila yelled at the top of her lungs before smashing a lamp to the floor, causing Princess Justice to flinch slightly. “How dare that despicable insect act all friendly and nice now, after she’d mercilessly humiliated me in front of Adrien?!” The girl started pacing around the living room, completely unaware that she wasn’t alone. “She’s obviously trying to rub that she’s better than me all over my face! Well, just you wait, Ladybug! Because I will not stop at anything until I’ve got rid of you!”

Princess Justice was blinking slowly, trying to wrap her head around how extremely lucky she was. She couldn’t believe she actually caught that on video.

Just as Lila was finished ranting about Ladybug, her cell phone rang, “Hello?” She asked, “Oh, _buonasera_, Mamma!” Huh, so it was her mother who called.

“Oh, Mamma, I had such a crazy day at school…” her voice became pitiful, “Paris is infested with these vicious supervillains called akumas! School’s been indefinitely closed because of them, in fact. I’m so scared, Mamma!” There was silence as Lila listened to her mother from the other line. When Madame Rossi stopped, her daughter continued with her lies, “Apparently, Paris has these two ‘superheroes’ taking care of the akumas, but they’re _so_ useless! Especially the one called Ladybug.” The invisible girl had to physically make an effort to not throw the cell phone at the Italian girl. “Oh, but don’t worry, Mamma! My day wasn’t all bad, I actually found a boyfriend!” _Please, don’t say Adrien Agreste. Please, don’t say Adrien Agreste!_, the blue-eyed girl pleaded. “His name’s Adrien Agreste, and he loves me so much already!” _Aaaaaand she said Adrien Agreste_, Princess Justice lamented.

Seriously, _how_ did she manage to convince anyone she wasn’t interested in Adrien?! Because she was doing a lousy job at being subtle about her infatuation…

As the akumatised girl mentally rolled her eyes, Lila kept on talking to her mother, “Oh, you want to talk to Monsieur Damocles about school being closed?” For a moment, Princess Justice could actually hear her voice going a few octaves higher than usual due to panic. “Don’t worry, Mamma. I know how busy you are, I’ll make the call for you!” Again, silence. “Yes, yes, I’ll tell you everything they say. Yes, I love you too. _Ciao_!”

After hanging up on her mother, she dialled a different number. “Hello? Monsieur Damocles? It’s me, Lila Rossi. I just wanted to let you know that I won’t be able to go to school for a while. You see, sir, my parents who, as you know, are very busy diplomats have been asked to do a tour all around the world by the embassy. And, of course, they can’t just leave me alone for who knows how long! So I’ll have to miss school until we’re back. I’m so sorry… Okay, I’ll make sure to enjoy myself in the meantime. See you soon, Monsieur!”

_So that’s how she managed to skip school for months_, Princess Justice said, narrowing her eyes at the girl.

Never mind that, though. She still had far bigger fish to fry. She left the house, unnoticed, and, once outside, she changed Troblemaker’s pen for Time Tagger’s spray can. Repeating the action from before, she travelled to her next destination: Heroes’ Day.

However, her next location was the same she’d just been at; Lila’s home. Considering Volpina had been active then, Princess Justice had a very good hunch the girl would actually be at her house while doing the video chat. So she perched herself on a streetlight near the girl’s window, and waited.

Soon enough, she got the chance to record Lila as she prepared her homemade stage. To make it look like she was in Achu she hanged up a portrait, the same scenery they’d seen as background when talking to her in class; she put her desk lamp on her bed near her and turned it up, its light making it look like the Sun was, indeed, setting; and she turned on her laptop as well.

_That explains why she always managed to cover up her lies despite saying so many inconsistencies…, _Princess Justice thought bitterly.

A few minutes after that, the show began. The blue-eyed girl could barely repress a yawn as she watched the events unfold. A part of her was really bored with hearing the same old tales all over again, but her dominant and calculating side was right; she needed proof of _everything_.

Finally, the interesting part started. Just as Lila exited the video chat and closed her computer, her mother made it to the room. The two Italian women helped her collect proof against the younger one once more. Thanks to their conversation, Princess Justice had further evidence on Lila skipping class and lying about it both to the school and her family; that, despite her claims, she was very much interested in Adrien, seeing as she kept referring to him as her boyfriend to her mother, and that she wasn’t nearly as good friends with Ladybug as she claimed to be.

Any other day, this would’ve been enough for Marinette. Any other day, she would’ve been more than happy with what she got so far and limited herself to using just that. But today wasn’t any other day. And she no longer was Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Today was the day when Lila had gone out of her way to ruin both her dream and her friendship with Adrien, one of the people she cared for most in the world; crush or no crush. And today was the day when Princess Justice would be the judge of the girl’s actions.

And Lila had a really _weak_ alibi.

So she waited for the akuma she was sure would come. And not long after Lila had thrown a fit because of Gabriel Agreste comparing Volpina to Ladybug, shouting her hatred for the superheroine at the top of her lungs–Princess Justice almost felt sorry for the girl; she was making things too easy for her… almost–the little dark butterfly made its appearance, bringing Volpina with it.

Satisfied with herself, Princess Justice pondered on her next move. She could just travel to the day Lila came back to school and proved to be a lot more conniving than what she initially thought, but there were still a few questions that needed to be answered.

Mainly, why everyone but her knew of Lila’s return and her so-called, so very convenient tinnitus.

Making up her mind, she took Time Tagger’s weapon and fired, now being transported to the day _before_ Lila’s return, being in front of her house yet again.

Resuming her previous position, she witnessed Lila in her room talking on the phone.

“Oh, Alya!” She greeted the redhead with her sugary sweet voice. “It’s so good to hear from you after so long! … Thank you! And don’t worry, I promise I’ll tell you all about me and Ladybug as soon as I return.” How anyone could muster a faux friendly voice at the same time as they grimaced was beyond the girl recording from the streetlight. “And speaking of my return, I’ll actually be able to go back to school tomorrow! But… Oh, no. I shouldn’t bother you with this… No, Alya. Really, it’s nothing important.” Princess Justice made sure she caught the smirk and condescending roll of her eyes on camera, zooming in for good measure.

“Well, if you insist… You see, I think I’ll have to ask Nino to change seats with me. I have tinnitus, an incessant noise in my left ear; so I can’t focus in class in my current seat at the back. But I feel so bad, because that’ll mean poor Nino will have to seat all alone… Really? You think he won’t mind? I don’t know…” As she guilt-tripped the ladyblogger, Lila had the gall to disinterestedly leaf through a magazine, as if she were bored with the conversation. “You know what? I think I have the perfect idea! How about Nino seats right beside you?! Even better, why don’t I talk to everybody so they get a chance to seat with their best friends? That way I won’t feel so guilty for imposing so much on you guys.” Alya had to be telling her something that displeased her greatly, for her expression hardened considerably. “Marinette?” Oh, so that was what put her in such a foul mood all of a sudden. “Oh, don’t worry about her! I’ll explain things to her myself. She’s such a sweet girl, and an even better person! I’m sure she’ll have no problem helping out… Okay, bye! See you tomorrow!”

The moment she hanged up, Lila’s expression showed but one emotion; disdain. “Like I’m gonna waste my time giving that nuisance a chance to avoid utter humiliation…” she said with disgust. “Who does she think she is, anyway? Having the nerve to try and make me look like a liar, just like that despicable insect. And on top of that, taking advantage of my absence to get all chummy with _my_ Adrien. Talk to her about the seat arrangement… As if!” She scoffed.

True to her word (for once), Lila contacted every single one of her classmates to sell her sob story regarding her ‘hearing problem.’ All of them but Marinette.

Princess Justice got what she wanted. Lila had deliberately left her all alone in the back row in an attempt to isolate her. And that was _before_ their confrontation in the bathroom!

Half dreading, half looking forward for what was to come, she chose her new destination. The day Lila promised she’d make her life miserable, the day Chameleon was akumatised, and the day Marinette swore to unmask the deceitful girl one day.

The very next day.

This time, she didn’t bother to arrive before her past-self did, Lila arrived after her, after all. Moreover, that way she could find more evidence on everyone knowing about her return and her fake disability but her. 

Bent down outside the window, she got the camera rolling. Lila’s lies about her hearing problem and its origins, her crocodile tears as Marinette simply tried to defend herself from such an unfair situation, the way Lila completely ignored class to futilely flirt with Adrien–even after making a show of asking for his help to catch up with schoolwork.

Like she was going to get any work done if she did nothing but make Adrien uncomfortable…

Remembering the rest of the morning had been uneventful, she made it to the cafeteria. She positioned herself up high, in the perfect place to record Lila as she took advantage of her classmates and miraculously avoided being caught when she threw that napkin at her.

Princess Justice made a note on focusing solely on the new student, she learned that day her reasons for distrusting Lila could be seen as problematic. And this day was all about getting the brunette in so-much-deserved trouble, not her.

And… The napkin incident had arrived.

The masked girl made sure to zoom in on Lila’s face, taking the chance to get her spiteful expression at her past-self calling her name on camera. Her firm grip on the napkin that only loosened once she realised she was about to get caught. And that deliciously panicked expression she made when their classmates began doubting her claims.

After that little liar had found her way out of that close call, Princess Justice took her previous-self’s irate expression as her cue to get inside the bathroom before they did. Bent down and balancing herself with one hand as she held the phone up with the other over the bathroom stall door, she waited.

Soon enough, the battle of wills ensued.

Even to this day, she could still feel the overwhelming pain Lila caused her when she mocked her beliefs and her classmates, threatening her to do the same or she’d find herself lonely and friendless. The intense heat of her rage was enough to light a vengeful fire in her heart, desperate for justice. The sting caused by the tears in her eyes due to that feeling of incompetence was worse than any wound made with the sharpest blade in existence.

But if there was one thing she’d learned over the months Paris had been terrorised by Hawk Moth and his akumas, it was that pain was a force to be reckoned with. Sometimes, it was the only thing that kept you going when you felt like you’d lost everything. And it sanitised people from their fears and qualms.

And Lila had caused _so much_ unnecessary pain.

After taking a few deep breaths to compose herself after reliving that unpleasant experience, she quietly left the bathroom. She still had to figure out how Lila ended up getting akumatised when it was _her_ who’d been isolated, taunted, and threatened all in the same day.

Quickly following that unrepentant bully, it didn’t take her long to have her questions answered. Apparently, after another failed attempt at getting closer to Adrien, she got pissed because he kindly warned her of the consequences her tendencies could bring on her.

Two words Marinette never thought she’d ever use, especially in this dire times where people could be transformed into supervillains after having a bad day; _Fucking psycho_.

She followed her once more, always making sure to keep some distance to avoid being discovered. And what she witnessed, more so, what she actually _got on camera_, shocked her to her core.

Lila _grabbed_ an akuma.

Lila grabbed an akuma and _made a deal_ with Hawk Moth.

Lila grabbed an akuma and made a deal with Hawk Moth _all by herself!_

Princess Justice couldn’t stop the grin on her face even if she wanted to. Oh, boy… That little pest was going _down_!

Getting out there before her maniacal laughter gave her away, she chose her next destination. The day Lila sneaked her way inside the Agreste mansion and akumatised Kagami.

The dark-haired akuma could remember Kagami opening up about that day. It came out mostly unprompted. She just wanted to apologise for accidentally getting her akumatised when she mistakenly chose Adrien as the winner of their fencing match, assuring her it was solely because she had just started practicing fencing that very day.

_“Don’t worry about it, Marinette.” She remembered her saying. “I know it’s not like you to actively try and hurt others, unless they give you a good reason to.” Then, she chuckled. But there was no real mirth behind it. “It’s actually funny, you know? Riposte is not the only time I’ve been akumatised.”_

_“Really?” She had to feign ignorance. As far as she knew, only Ladybug, Chat Noir, Lila, and maybe Adrien were aware of Kagami being Oni-chan._

_“Really.” Kagami nodded. “One day I was training with my mother in the park when I got a message. When I opened it, I found a picture of this Lila girl from your class kissing Adrien on the cheek.” Her expression became thoughtful, downcast. For the first time ever since she’d befriended the fencer, Marinette could distinguish some feelings she knew too well herself on her face; nervousness and fear. “I was so mad when I saw it… I’ve known for a long time Adrien has someone he loves,” Marinette did her best to hide the pain caused by the pang in her heart at hearing those words, “but he never even mentioned Lila! And… I felt lied to…” her voice was suddenly so very small. It wasn’t like Kagami. That was wrong. So, so wrong. “And… jealous. I felt so jealous I must have attracted the akuma. And everything else is a blur, all I remember after that is waking up in some street far away from the park I was originally in, Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Lila around me…”_

_Kagami then turned her face to Marinette, her expression full of worry. “I’ll understand if you don’t think I’m worthy of being friends with you or Adrien after that, Marinette.” She then turned her face away, avoiding eye contact. “My actions were inexcusable. I’m sorry.”_

Princess Justice could remember the feeling of her heart breaking in two after that like it was yesterday. For the second time since she arrived at school to challenge Monsieur d’Argentcourt’s best student, Kagami had shared her vulnerable side with her. She felt horrible for letting her jealousy get to the better of her.

And while her friend was admonishing herself for things she couldn’t control, she was convinced Lila felt nothing but pride for what she’d done.

Whereas Kagami feared not being worthy of Adrien’s friendship anymore, Lila lied her way into his home, his personal space.

Now it wasn’t just about herself. Lila’s selfishness and lies have hurt too many people, too many of her loved ones, way too many times.

Now it was about avenging _them_, not only her.

Pointing the spray can to a wall near her, she travelled to her next destination. Once again, she was in front of Lila’s window, eager to perch herself over the streetlight that was soon becoming a very productive stake out spot.

Princess Justice remembered it was then when Alya said Lila wasn’t in love with Adrien for the first time. Something she heard from Nino. Meaning Lila must’ve convinced him then of such ridiculous claim, alongside of getting Adrien to help her out with her homework, judging from what she heard Adrien say.

Soon, Lila walked into her room with an apple in her mouth. As she prepared her materials for school, she listened to a voice message. Apparently, her mother would be coming back late. And, much to the masked girl’s shock, that seemed to _sadden_ Lila.

_So that’s what’s wrong with her… _Princess Justice guessed. Judging from that interaction, it didn’t take her long to figure out it was her mother’s absence what had initially driven Lila to seek attention anywhere else. But seeing as her room was decorated with countless things she more than likely wanted to have out of a whim, let alone her methods for getting the attention she was lacking at home, she soon deduced Lila ultimately got used to always getting whatever she wanted. Which likely turned her initial intentions behind her desire for being the centre of attention into something far more twisted and superficial.

_Well, too late to back down now!_ She sadistically thought as she pushed any possible regrets caused by sympathy to the back of her mind.

Not long after that Lila started walking to school, Princess Justice following close behind her. When Nino came he noticed her forlorn expression, which Lila explained as having to stay home instead of travelling with her mother due to having to catch up with schoolwork. Which she _then_ used to guilt-trip Nino into getting him to ask Adrien to help her out on her behalf, shielding herself behind the ruse that she didn’t want to make Adrien uncomfortable or have him thinking she was in love with him, like many other girls.

Any ounce of sympathy or compassion Princess Justice could have felt after witnessing Lila’s lonely home life was soon extinguished after she dared manipulate one of her oldest friends like that. Which was all the more reason to capture that calculating smirk the brunette had on right before she toyed with poor Nino’s conscience.

As she patiently bought her time before she started filming again, Princess Justice pondered what her next move should be.

Should she get inside Adrien’s car and record his conversation with Lila? No, that might make her look like a stalker or put her plan in jeopardy.

Should she record how Lila’s message had akumatised Kagami? No, her friend didn’t deserve to be humiliated like that.

Should she record how Lila _deliberately_ faked an injury so she and Chat Noir would split up and ultimately allow Oni-chan to defeat them? As much as she wanted to prove just how much of a supervillain that liar truly was, Marinette couldn’t possibly know about that, so it’d only put her secret identity in danger. Besides, she already had the video where she willingly grabbed an akuma for that.

No. Disproving Lila’s claims should be much easier. All she needed to do was the same thing her past-self originally intended to.

She was going to figure out just what happened inside that house.

Getting ahead of the car, she waited for them on top of the manor. Using Lady Wifi’s cell phone to zoom in on the two teenagers, she finally discovered Lila had manipulated Monsieur Agreste’s assistant into letting her in by saying it was _Adrien_ who needed help with homework! The nerve of that girl!

Hanging upside down from the frame of the door, she made the most of her time and recorded Adrien outright holding Lila’s lies against her. To which she replied she wasn’t exactly lying.

_That’s it. _Princess Justice mentally deadpanned. _This girl literally has no idea what the meaning of lying is. Please, can someone give her a dictionary?_

Leaping upwards, she slightly opened one of the windows from Adrien’s room to watch the next series of events unfold. Which was, ironically, similar to what the brunette did when she was Volpina.

At the sight before her, Princess Justice was clenching the fist she used for support so tight her knuckles turned white. In the timespan of an hour, Lila–who was supposed to be there to _work**–**_ spent around forty minutes doing anything but. Making useless small talk with Adrien, making herself at home without a second thought, fruitlessly trying to hide her disdain for any person Adrien seemed to appreciate that wasn’t her–mainly Ladybug and Kagami, the latter who she didn’t even _know_–, and snooping around his room with no sense of personal space.

A liar, a bully, a sexual harasser, a willing ally to a terrorist, and now she had no manners. This girl had definitely won the lottery when it came to flaws.

And the moment M Agreste’s assistant announced Adrien’s father would be making his appearance soon? She ran off like a coward! But not before forcing a kiss on Adrien and taking a selfie while doing so. Even if it was on the cheek, it was plain wrong. Adrien looked so uncomfortable! But Lila didn’t pay any mind to the consequences her actions had on others, not even if they affected Adrien. That brat acted like she was entitled to him!

Baring her teeth, Princess Justice decided to go to a different date before she committed murder and ruined her plan.

In retrospective, maybe that particular day Lila’s actions weren’t as serious as others, but they’d certainly caused some harm. If she were being honest with herself, she didn’t understand why she’d want to help Chloé out, considering all the years of bullying she endured because of that spoiled brat. But Lila had gone out of her way to mess with Chloé’s head, even when the two had never really interacted. And she needed to know why.

She assumed her best card would be visiting Lila’s house a few hours before school started, which was when she talked to Chloé. But when she made it to her usual spot about an hour before classes began, she noticed the manipulative pest wasn’t in her room, but sitting on a bench opposite to her window in the park. It looked like she was waiting for someone.

Positioning herself behind a tree left to Lila right after she began to speak, she couldn’t figure out just who she was talking to. But it wasn’t like that mattered, for the girl started badmouthing anyone close to Adrien –right after she gushed over the teen model, making the akumatised teen shudder in disgust– unprompted.

And she got it all. Lila calling her a dummy, saying Chloé was tacky, _badmouthing poor Nino!_ Despite the increase in vitriol it was causing her, she got what she was looking for. The mention of Chloé and Adrien having always been close to each other was enough to irk Lila beyond compare, something she didn’t bother to hide, for once.

Meaning she messed with Chloé solely because she was jealous that she was closer to Adrien than she was.

_Abhorrent admirer, much? _Princess Justice mused.

Now there was one last place she needed to visit before proving Lila had ambushed her yet again in what, despite her constant time travels, turned out to be roughly 20 minutes ago.

When she got her expelled from school barely a month ago.

She could feel her blood boiling at the mere thought. One thing was turning everyone against her like she’d promised she’d do (and that was bad enough), and another very different thing was getting her expelled! That girl was the definition of devious! She was conniving. She was underhanded. She was selfish, self-centred. She was shallow. She was as unrepentant as she was petty. She couldn’t even fathom the idea of not being at the receiving end of everyone’s love and attention 24/7!

No one deserved to be described as a hate sink more than Lila!

Pointing Time Tagger’s weapon to the floor, she arrived at that fateful day.

She arrived about two hours before classes started or anyone came to school. She knew she needed to think how Lila could have framed her of cheating or stealing that darned necklace if she’d been expelled before the first periods of the day ended. _Of course! _Her eyes widened at the realisation, _The locker room! Lila must’ve been waiting I arrived and got distracted by something to put the answers in my backpack! And since my locker is faulty, she surely opened it without a problem when she let her necklace there!_

Knowing what to do, she ran atop the rooftops and sneaked in to the locker room through an open window. Getting up on top of the line of lockers where hers was, she waited.

Just as she predicted, Lila had sneaked not long after she arrived and, taking advantage of a moment she had her back turned, slipped the answer sheet inside her backpack. As well as waited for Marinette to be headed to class before she opened her locker and put her necklace in.

That explained how she entered the room later than she did when she was pretty sure she’d seen her arrive at school _before_ her.

With no time to lose, she made it to the same spot from where she recorded Lila guilt-tripping and turning everyone against her over the seat arrangement. This time she filmed the accusations, Adrien and Alya using logic to defend her, for they knew she would never cheat in an exam. And soon, Lila spoke. Feigning surprise over the incident, clearly baiting Marinette to fall into her trap. Because she was aware she’d catch onto her plot as soon as she made a comment, for she knew, had she had nothing to do with it, she wouldn’t have batted an eyelash at her struggle.

But she did speak up, taunting Marinette with the knowledge that only she, Marinette, and Adrien shared about being her who slipped the answer sheet in her bag.

As soon as Mademoiselle Bustier sent the two girls to the Principal’s office, Princess Justice ran over the rooftops until she was opposite to where the liar and her previous self were. From where she got Lila calmly walking down the stairs before she laid on the floor and made a scene of crying in pain and framing Marinette of pushing her down the stairs on camera. 

And last but not least, she went back to the locker room to prove once and for all Lila had lied about Marinette stealing her necklace, too. For she had the evidence where Lila could be seen sneaking the piece of jewellery in before first period. She made the better of the momentarily akuma infestation to escape without being noticed.

And now for the great finale! With this she would truly get karma to bite Lila in the ass for everything she’d been doing to her behind everyone’s backs. She would finally get a taste of her own medicine.

With a low chuckle and a confident smirk, she travelled to her last destination: the last few hours of Marinette Dupain-Cheng and the dawn of Princess Justice, the bringer of truth.

Taking advantage of Time Tagger’s precision, she appeared at the 37th floor, minutes before she clashed into Lila. And when she finally stumbled before her, she got the camera rolling, zooming in to show that, indeed, that lying, manipulative thief had taken her bracelet from her. With the phone camera still on, she followed her to a very familiar room, quickly grabbing Troublemaker’s pen to turn intangible and phase through the door, all the while she fought down a feeling of nausea. Her plan was draining her more than she expected, but it would soon all be worth it, for she caught the Italian girl on video as she trashed the mannequins that displayed the firm’s upcoming fashion line, tore the fabrics apart, splashed the colour dye over the designs and floor, and, most importantly, she caught her as she let her bracelet fall to the ground, a hand slightly covering her mouth as she muttered, “Oops! My, my, my! Look what you’ve done, Marinette!” before laughing out loud and exiting the room.

_Now_ justice could truly be served.

* * *

Adrien wasn’t sure which emotion was stronger at the moment; the immense worry he felt towards poor Marinette, or the infinite revulsion he had for Lila.

After his father had kicked his friend out of the photoshoot, he took advantage of his break to look for her. He looked everywhere around the floor, asked everyone if they’d seen a crying pigtailed girl of his age, called her name countless times… All for nothing. He had no idea where she might be.

And it was all Lila’s fault. He thought he made it clear after she got her expelled that, unless she wanted to say goodbye to their ‘friendship’, she would leave Marinette and his loved ones alone once and for all. But, apparently, the girl _did_ have hearing problems after all.

He was currently at the reception of Montparnasse Tower, in the lower floor, where the entrance and the cafeteria were also located. He figured he could grab something to eat as he looked for Marinette before he was forced to go back to modelling.

But as he waited for his order to be done, the last person he would ever want to see again called to him in her overly sugary, overly fake voice, “Oh, there you are, Adrien! I’ve been looking all over for you!” Lila said as she, once again, stood too close for comfort for him. “I was thinking, since you and I work so well together and we are the faces of the _Agreste_ brand, we could go and practice for our shared shoot, don’t you th-?”

“You must really take me for a moron, don’t you, Lila?” Adrien cut her off.

The brunette let out a gasp, her eyes widening. Not only had Adrien just used a word she never even thought he’d know, but his tone of voice was even colder and more piercing than the day he made her prove Dupain-Cheng was innocent. “Wha-what?” She stammered. She soon regained her cool, though. This was Adrien Agreste, for crying out loud! The nicest, most trusting boy in all Paris! She could win him over in the bat of an eyelash. “Oh, Adrien. What could you possibly mean?” she asked with feigned innocence, “You are one of the smartest boys I know! I would never think of you as a moron!”

“But you must definitely take me for a fool if you keep ignoring my warnings and purposely getting the people I love in trouble, Lila.” He turned to look at her with so much anger, she flinched. “Just like Marinette, who you keep screwing with over and over!” Under any other circumstances he would have kept his voice low and chosen his words carefully when voicing his disappointment, afraid of hurting the person he was talking to. But these were not ‘any other circumstances’, and the person he was talking to didn’t deserve the tiniest bit of consideration after what she’d done.

Lila scoffed, not making the slightest effort in hiding her distaste for the pigtailed girl. “Are you still losing sleep over Marinette pretending to be your friend only to get closer to your father?” She flipped her hair with an air of disinterest before crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m sorry you had to find out like that, Adrien. But it was high time you faced the facts, Marinette is nowhere near as nice as she lets on.”

“Don’t you _dare_ pin the blame on Marinette, Lila!” The blond spat. “You and I know it was _you_ who trashed my father’s upcoming project so you could hurt Marinette, _again_!” He frustratingly rubbed his hands all over his face before screaming at her. “God, you’re worse than Hawk Moth!”

Judging by the look on her face, she was miffed by that, “Are you really saying I’m worse than the supervillain who’s been manipulating innocents and terrorising Paris for months?”

For once, Adrien was far too gone to hold all his anger back, so he finally allowed himself to tear the girl before him, the girl who’d been testing his patience for far too long, a new one. “Yes! Because that’s exactly what you do, Lila! You manipulate whoever wants to get near you and ruin the lives of those who don’t. And you toy with the innocent people who naively put their trust on you by promising them their heart’s desire. You _are_ just like Hawk Moth! Except that, unlike you, Hawk Moth actually gives them what they wanted in return!”

Before they continued on with their conversation, both received a message from an unknown number. But they didn’t open it, far too engrossed in their argument. They didn’t need to, though. The next moment, the TV screen of the cafeteria, alongside every other television, computer, tablet, and cell phone in Paris displayed the same thing.

The sight before him made Adrien’s blood run cold, the weight of the situation crushing him like an avalanche.

Recording from what Adrien knew was the top of the Eiffel Tower thanks to countless adventures alongside His Lady, a mysterious figure stood straight, her hands, covered by the sleeves of her dress, on her hips. The expression she wore was that of the victorious winner of a game of chess who, after more than enough failures, had finally succeeded at beating their rival. And the smirk on her face promised chaos was to be ensued.

The akuma before him was a stranger and someone he’d be able to recognise amongst a million faces, simultaneously.

_Marinette…_

The familiar stranger spoke up, “Dear citizens of Paris!” She addressed her dumbfounded viewers, opening her arms wide. “I am Princess Justice and I am here to warn you all; a villain other than Hawk Moth has been walking amongst us, bringing injustice and undeserved punishments to the innocent by blinding our minds with manipulation and deceit! And the name of this villain is Lila Rossi!”

If it weren’t because Adrien was far too immersed in the events unfolding in front of him, he would have heard Lila gasp.

“This girl”, Princess Justice continued, “has lied, manipulated, tormented, and hurt innocent souls for the sake of salvaging her own delusions of grandeur.” She laughed. “It seems it’s true what they say; teenagers are monsters. I, myself, have been on the receiving end of this unrepentant liar’s devious schemes over and over! And all because I wasn’t about to let her play my friends like one plays checkers.

“However, I foolishly underestimated my opponent, trying to beat her at her own game when she had all the cards.” She admitted with a voice so small, her head hanging low. Even so, she soon replaced that expression with a triumphant grin, her head held high. “But now it is _she_ who has underestimated _me_! Now I can finally prove to all of you just how far Lila Rossi is willing to go only to satisfy her unhealthy need for attention.”

The moment she said that, the recording started playing scenes that caused Lila to blanch.

Right before her very own eyes was a video of herself that showed just how much of a liar she was. It showed every single lie she told to everyone since she arrived. It showed her stealing Adrien’s book and then throwing it in the trashcan when they met up. It showed _Ladybug_ calling her out on her lies. It showed how much she _hated_ the superheroine she swore being _friends _with! It showed her lying to her mother and the school staff, and skipping school for _months_! It showed how, not only had she been trying to alienate Marinette from her friends and loved ones from the very beginning, but going as far as declaring war at her! _She was even seen grabbing that akuma!_ It showed her lying about _everything_ and manipulating _everyone_, faking injuries and diseases in order to gain their pity. It showed her clear possessiveness over Adrien despite what she’d sworn over and over. It showed her speaking ill about every single one of her classmates out of a feeling of superiority and jealousy over their closeness to Adrien. And, worst of all, it proved her to be the true culprit for every single action she’d framed Marinette of.

Princess Justice’s voice broke her out of her panicked thoughts. “The truth hurts, doesn’t it, Lila?” The akuma raised an eyebrow, as if she were staring straight at her. “You did swear you would make my life unbearable. However, I, myself, swore I’d unmask you one day. And it seems I’ve finally fulfilled my goal.” She let out a sardonic laugh. “You wanted to take me down, didn’t you? Well, I guess I’m taking you down with me.”

Yes, Princess Justice was right, Lila was officially screwed.

Soon enough, the liar’s phone started buzzing with dozens of messages from her outraged classmates, chewing her out for her lies.

** _alya.ladyblogger: _ ** _WHAT TF IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?!?!?!?!??!_

** _alya.ladyblogger: _ ** _First you have the gall to make me post an interview about your non-existent friendship with Ladybug (who you made pretty clear you hate, mind you) and THEN you actually dare fuck Marinette over?!?!??!??!?_

** _DJBubbleTurtle: _ ** _DUDE! You used me! I try to help you and you talk shit about me behind my back?!?!??! AND YOU ACTUALLY TELL ME YOU AIN’T INTO ADRIEN??? What a load of BULLSHIT._

** _theofficialchloebourgeois:_ ** _ How DARE you call yourself LB’s BFF! Everybody knows that’s ME! You are ridiculous! UTTERLY RIDICULOUS!_

** _MonKim: _ ** _You know, you should really lift some weights. Because after this no one’s gonna carry your food tray anymore. YOU LIAR!_

** _Max Kanté: _ ** _I cannot believe I fell for your poor excuse of trying to protect me from the napkin. Clearly, I am not as intelligent as I thought. But that is a mistake I intend to rectify. And I cannot think of a better way than ignoring anything you have to say from now on. As they say, “fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” So… Shame on you._

She kept receiving messages from everyone, her heart sinking more and more with each text she read. But her heart simply stopped when she read one particular message.

** _Mamma: _ ** _We have got to talk._

Feeling the dread coming up to her, the girl tried seeking refuge clasping Adrien’s arm, but he shoved her away, not-too-gently.

“I warned you, Lila.” He said, his voice drenched in cold, unforgiving fury. “I told you your lies would catch up to you and put everyone against you. And _this_,” he gestured as Marinette’s akumatised self,” is what I was trying to warn you about especially. You think getting exposed was the worst that could happen? Of course not! Your lies and actions were bound to akumatise people! And you just happened to have pushed Marinette, one of the strongest, most optimistic people I know, too far. I hope you’re proud of yourself, you finally have the attention you craved so much.”

And with that, he turned on his heel, not even giving the girl a chance to reply. Saving Marinette was his top priority.

Lila just stood there, stunned. How could _Adrien _talk to her like that?! _No one_ had ever talked to her like that! And he even went as far as to refuse to help her when it was _his_ meddling little friend who was targeting _her_. She gritted her teeth, she’d deal with him later. Now she had to make sure Dupain-Cheng couldn’t find her.

“I hope you have a good lawyer, Lila.” Said a voice from behind her that sent chills all over her body. “Because I don’t know how you’re going to win this case otherwise.”

She slowly turned to the source of the voice, fearing the worst. Her fears become reality when she realised that, yes, the voice belonged to Princess Justice indeed.

The girl screamed at the top of her lungs before making a run for it and getting as far away from the building, from the _akuma_, as possible.

* * *

Locking himself in the bathroom, Adrien was about to transform when he noticed his kwami’s worried expression. “Plagg? Is anything wrong?”

The question startled the kwami a little. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t possibly tell his chosen _Ladybug_ was the akuma! But he couldn’t just expect him to not find it suspicious that his partner wouldn’t assist him with this particular villain. Adrien wasn’t stupid. He had to think of an alternative.

“Kid, listen.” Plagg said. “We’re going to have to fight Princess Justice without Ladybug.”

“What?!” Adrien’s eyebrows shot up to the ceiling. “Has something happened to her?” Then he furrowed his brow, confused. “And _how _do you know that?”

The black kwami gulped. “B-because… Ti-Tikki!”

“Tikki?”

“Yes, Tikki. I can sense her, and… she isn’t around her holder at the moment.” He then became serious. “We have to stop Princess Justice ourselves, Adrien.”

The model thought about it for a minute. He really didn’t want to fight Marinette alone, he really needed His Lady if he was to hurt one of his best friends. Ladybug would help him with damage control.

But… there needn’t be any damage!

“It’s fine, Plagg. I’m sure I can get Marinette to snap out of it. After all, she’s friends with Chat Noir.” He said with a confident grin.

“Adrien, you tried that with Lila when she was Volpina and it totally backfired.”

“Yes, but Marinette’s not Lila! She doesn’t like involving more people than necessary in her problems. And she would never hurt one of her loved ones. I can do this, Plagg.”

The kwami just sighed, “I sure hope you know what you’re doing, kid.”

“I do.” He assured him, hopeful. “Now Plagg, claws out!”

* * *

She had to get away from Princess Justice! If she’d gone as far as disproving every single one of her lies and recording evidence on every morally questionable decision she’d ever made, there was no telling what an akumatised Marinette was capable of.

Her heart caught on her throat when she turned a corner, only to find Princess Justice staring down at her from a streetlight. When she ducked behind a car, Princess Justice was lazily laid down on top of it, holding her head with her hand. The moment she was about to get in a bus to run away from her, the doors opened to reveal Princess Justice herself as the driver.

She was _everywhere_!

_Why_ was she everywhere?!

Panting from exhaustion as she pushed herself to keep on running, Lila could feel something entangling itself around her the lower tip of her hair. She yelped as it yanked her backwards into a dark alley.

“I always knew that hair of yours would eventually give you a headache.” Said a voice that seemed to be coming from above.

In the blink of an eye, Princess Justice descended from the rooftops to the entrance of the alley. As she approached the brunette, slowly and tauntingly, her heels hit the concrete floor, accelerating Lila’s pulse to impossible speeds. The masked girl was twirling a very familiar, orange and white flute around her fingers with her left hand, her right hand storing a yo-yo similar to Ladybug’s but with the colours inverted in her purse.

“No wonder you liked that little ‘multiple illusions of me’ trick so much, Volpina.” She mocked her. “It’s fun confusing your opponents!”

Lila refused to back down. This was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, for God’s sake! The girl she’d outsmarted over and over the last few months. There was no way she’d defeat her any time soon. Luckily for her, she knew just what to do. She’d make a peace offering, just like she did with Oni-chan. After all, the monstrous girl was a dangerous opponent with or without powers, but Marinette? What could _Marinette_ possibly do? And besides, she’d rather find the true extent of Princess Jusice’s powers if they were directed at Ladybug and not her.

“Marinette, please!” She pleaded, her voice coated with fake sympathy. “You don’t have to do this! You’re far better than that!” Lila put on a contemplative face, “Tell you what? How about we make a deal? If you use your powers to get rid of that annoying Ladybug for me, I promise I won’t ever get you in trouble again. More so, if you spare me and defeat Ladybug, we can both rule the school together! What do you say?”

Lila was taken aback by the dark-haired girl’s laughter. At first she was confused and slightly hopeful her plan had worked, until a terrible realisation made its way to her mind: Princess Justice wasn’t laughing with her, she was laughing _at_ her!

Once the laughter went from roars to giggles and, subsequently, ceased, Princess Justice kept on approaching the culprit before her. “If you think I’m going to stoop as low as you and use a escape goat, Lila, you’re far more stupid than I thought.”

She couldn’t help but laugh at the brunette’s gaping face. “It is high time you heard the truth, Lila. Although, I have to admit, no wonder you love lying so much; the truth actually sucks for you. Because, the truth is, Lila, that you’re nowhere near as sneaky, interesting, or clever as you claim to be.

“If you were really that sneaky, you would have lied about things no one would be able to discover weren’t true. Things that would require of more than mere fact-checking to refute. If you were really that interesting, you wouldn’t have lied in the first place. And if you were really that clever, you would have known your actions have consequences. Consequences that would come back to haunt you.

“And I, I am the consequences of your actions! Because let me tell you, you delusional moron, you’re nothing but a spoiled brat with way too much imagination. You’re pathetic.”

As she went on and chewed Lila out, Princess Justice kept getting closer to her target. Backing her against the wall, she had nowhere to run. Taking great pleasure in how she finally managed to wipe that smug smirk off her face after all this time, the akumatised victim delivered her final blow. “And you know the best part? All this,” she gestured at everything around them, “could’ve been avoided had you actually been a decent person and stopped it with the lies. But you didn’t stop, and it wasn’t like you never had the chance. Because today all Paris has witnessed how Ladybug gave you a chance, how Adrien gave you a chance, how _I_ gave you a chance. But you ignored us all because playing Alpha Bitch was more fun, apparently. Well, what can I say now? You played your cards and you lost.” She leaned close enough to whisper in her ear, “But don’t forget, Lila. I gave you a choice.”

As she uttered those last words, she went ahead and shot Lila with a trumpet-shaped pistol the girl didn’t even notice leaving her purse, earning a new sticker for her little bag.

As she stored her artefacts away, however, she heard the distinct ‘clank’ of a metal staff hitting the pavement behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooooo, how was it? Was it as satisfying as I promised it'd be? 'Cause I sure hope so. Sorry if you found any plotholes, though. While I tried writing as little inconsistencies as possible some might have slipped past my radar, but if you want my humble advice, just ignore them and enjoy the generous amount of Lila Karma.  
Btw, as I said before, I ain't abandoning this fic, but I really don't know when I might upload next chapter. You see, chapter 4 is supposed to be the action-packed one and... that is not my forte...at all. But I'll figure things out eventually.  
Thank you so much for your support!  
Oh, and if you want a better view of Princess Justice's outfit (describing clothes ain't my strong suit either), @teresarosiadeviluke2112 drew some AMAZING fanart of it for her Tumblr. Here it is, go check it out!   
https://teresarosiadeviluke2112.tumblr.com/post/187766909950/hi-guys-so-if-you-havent-already-go-check-out


End file.
